Dea Ex Machina
by Biku
Summary: The sequel to Moral Konflict and Moral Konflict: Kontinuation. In parts. Part Three up!
1. Default Chapter

Dea Ex Machina  
by Biku

  
  
Johnny Cage, God of Fire, was in control of one of the strongest and most primal elements in the Omniverse. He was also sitting in his agent's office, and for the life of him, there was nothing he could do.

"What do you mean, I didn't get the part?" he barked. "They wrote the part _for me_!"

His agent squirmed. "Sorry, Johnny," he replied, uneasily. "They backed out of it."

"Backed? Backed?" Johnny repeated, sitting forward in his chair. "What are you talking about?"

His agent sighed. "For one, you're not very reliable. You tend to disappear without warning, notice or anything else, and then show up days or even weeks later and refuse to give explanations!"

"They were personal emergencies!" Johnny retorted.

"And then..." The agent trailed off, "There's the old rumours."

The movie star got very quiet, and sat back in his chair. "About my being a fake."

"Exactly. They're just stupid rumours, but nobody in production knows that. So they're using them as an excuse." The agent sighed, and pulled a handkerchief from his pocket. "Man, it's getting hot out, today."

Johnny said nothing, but sat very quietly and still, thinking of flames. Large flames that leapt about in front of his eyes. He wished he could show who ever started that ridiculous rumour what Johnny Cage was really made of.

The agent grew serious again. "Johnny, if you want to make a come-back--"

"Come-back?" Johnny inquired, his voice low. 

The agent rubbed his eyes. He thought he could see heat waves around the star's body. It wasn't _that_ hot out... "You haven't worked in a long time, too long," the agent finished, shaking his head. "You need to go out and show that you're still the actor you always were. You need to show that nothing's changed."

Johnny felt like laughing. _That's a good one. Nothing's changed_. "What are you suggesting?"

"There's a couple of scripts I'd like you to check out. Nothing fancy, mind you; but good steady stuff, to get you back on your feet. If you can manage to stay put, for once." The agent handed a stack to Johnny. Notes were written on the top page. The actor stared at them.

"Hold it--" he said, quietly. "You want me to read for the _villain_?"

"It's a good movie--" the agent began.

Johnny leapt to his feet, and it took all of his control not to burn the agent to a crisp where he sat. "I... do not... play... villains. You know that. The studios know that. Everybody knows that."

"Johnny," the agent began, sweating terrifically now--was the air-conditioning not working, or something?--"Johnny, you need to calm down, and further more, get a grip. We're not talking about the fate of the universe here--"

Johnny rested his palms on the faux wood desktop of his agent, and tiny wisps of smoke curled around his fingers. His agent stared, and rubbed his eyes again. "I do not play villains. End of story."

He turned, grabbed his jacket, and stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind him. His agent sighed with relief--why was he so frightened? He didn't know--and gasped when he saw the two perfect scorch marks in the shape of Johnny's hands.

  
Johnny tried to take deep calming breaths. He felt like a volcano about to blow. Like Krakatoa or Mount St. Helen's. Any second now he was going to lose it, completely.

It had been barely a month since he had become the God of Fire, taking over from Nova, in the final battle against Lightning. Sonya Blade, one of his closest friends, was made a Goddess; she was given the dominion of Space. Both had sworn to keep their powers a secret. At the time, Johnny had thought it would be an easy vow; all he had to do was go back to his regular life, and deal the same way he always had. 

What he didn't expect was how the powers constantly simmered under the surface. They were a secret that screamed, constantly, to be told. He was boiling under the pressure. He felt as though he was wearing two thick wool sweaters in the middle of a heat wave.

He had to get out.

He looked around him. He was in the halls outside his agent's office. Down a few steps was a the lobby; there was only one half-awake receptionist. It was at least an hour drive home, possibly more, in the traffic. He couldn't last that long. He couldn't.

Very discreetly, he opened a portal, and stepped through it.

  
He was home. His house was the same as he'd left it, before he went to China, before Lightning showed up and wrecked everything. And yet something about the comfortable bungalow seemed different; it was smaller, for one thing. The air was always stuffy, no matter how many windows were open. It was hard to breath, and it was very, very warm.

"I can't stay here, either," he muttered, pacing in his own hallway, awards and famous pictures lining the walls on either side of him. For a second, he imagined the walls closing in on him, trapping him forever. He had to get out.

He stopped. His fists were clenched at his sides. "Calm down, Cage," he muttered. "You're letting it go to your head. Calm down."

_Calm._

He had to go somewhere to calm down. He could always go to the Temple, he supposed; but Rayden was having enough troubles of his own, and Johnny didn't want to add to them.

"Where can I go that's some where calm? I have enough cash on me that I can book a flight..."

Flight? He didn't need a flight. He could go anywhere he wanted, in the blink of an eye. He closed his eyes. He wanted to go... _home_?

He was home. Something in the back of his mind informed him that this house was not _home_. _Home_ was somewhere far away, where he didn't have to worry about his powers, where he could relax. _I want to go there_...

  
He opened his eyes. The cool breeze wafted gently over him, and he could feel the anxiety flowing away as he stared out over the white sandy beach to the clear blue ocean horizon. He took a deep breath. The air was clean and scented with plants and flowers. He turned to see a lush jungle behind him.

"I'm in heaven," Johnny said out loud, smiling. "This is bliss."

It felt so _right_ for him to be there that he wondered why he hadn't come sooner. He sat down, and just let himself relax under the warm tropical sun.

There was a sudden splashing a few meters out to sea, and a head poked itself up out of the water. Johnny stood up, startled. The head wasn't human; it was human shaped, but it was tinted blue, with dark green hair, woven with seaweeds and bits of coral. 

"By the Creator!" the voice exclaimed. "You are our new Lord!"

"What?" Johnny blurted, confused. The head looked as though it was ready to leave. "Wait--stop!"

Instantly, the sea person turned back around. "Yes, Lord?" it asked, humbly.

"Where am I? Who are you? And why do you keep calling me Lord?" Johnny asked, coming to the water's edge. "My name is Johnny Cage. I'm from Earth."

"You are the Lord of Maresium," the person replied. "You are the God of Fire, and ruler of this Realm. We have been wondering where you were, why you did not come to meet us." There was a sob in its voice. "When the good Lady Hiko died, we did not know what would become of us."

"Maresium," Johnny muttered. Memories were surfacing. He'd once met some Maresians, when he was in Agri, Lindara's Realm, fighting with her mortals. The Maresians had been like him, though, although stockier and slightly greenish tinged. Nothing at all like the half-fish swimming in front of him. "This is Maresium?"

"Aye, Lord Johnny Cage." The head bobbed up and down in agreement. "Welcome home."

  
Rayden, Lord of Thunder, stood out in the grass, looking at the stars. The night skies were lit up with his handiwork, an entire universe of twinkling lights, and now, with satellites, planes--all sorts of human-made contraptions. At any other time he would have felt proud.

Now, though, he just felt lonely.

It was almost a month since the battle with Lightning--a desperate and demented goddess--a battle which had cost the lives of three of the people closest to him.

Liu Kang, a mortal, from Earth. He was one of the god's closest friends, ever since the last Mortal Kombat tournament. He had helped Rayden defeat his brother, Shao Khan.

Nova, a goddess only recently revealed as Rayden's own daughter. She'd grown up without him, and he'd been like an uncle to her. Not even an uncle. Someone who visited occasionally, a friend of the family.

And Hiko.

Hiko was the Goddess of Fire, a spectacular Immortal that Rayden had nearly married, before fate and his father stepped in. She'd married Cosmos out of desperation, and for years kept the secret of Nova's parentage. She had died trying to tell him.

He saw a plane moving by, in the distance, a set of lights that moved steadily across the horizon. He had once wanted mortals, in the place of a real family, but as time wore on, fewer and fewer became aware of his existence until he was only known as scattered myths across the globe. He thought he liked it that way. Thought it made it better for the mortals themselves. After all, how could they leap forward, figure everything out for themselves, if they kept believing that it was simply a god 'making it so'? 

_Penny for your thoughts._

Hiko used to ask that of him on many occasions. She was not very skilled at the two things he excelled at--telepathy and cooking--and he used to tease her endlessly about it.

_What would I tell you know, Hiko_? he thought to himself, losing his focus in the marvellous view. _That I miss you? That doesn't sound right. It doesn't do anybody any justice. I don't know what to say._

"Then don't say anything at all," she replied, over his shoulder. He whirled, startled. He opened his mouth and closed it, several times. She laughed.

She was leaning against the door, watching him, her eyes half-closed in mirth. Her hair was tossed over her shoulder, and she played with her scarf in her hands.

He took a step towards her. "Hiko," he murmured, his voice dry. As he got closer, he realised she was spectral, like a shadow; he could see through her. He stopped, confused thoroughly.

She smiled at him again, but was already fading away.

The door opened suddenly, and a woman stepped out. It was a second before he could see her face clearly, but he knew who she was instantly. Her hair gave her away.

Meimei, his little sister and the only one of his siblings to have the same white hair, stepped out into the cold air. She tip-toed off the cold stones of the Temple path into the grass.

"Rayden," she said, tiredly, "what are you doing up?"

"I could ask the same question of you," he replied, turning back to the horizon.

"I couldn't sleep." She was hopping about, her bare feet freezing in the cold, dew-laden grass. "You should be."

"I couldn't sleep either. Just lay awake thinking so I decided to come out here and think," he answered. "Thought I needed some air."

"I just woke up, I guess I had a bad dream," Meimei told him. "I thought that for some reason you might be up, so I came to see." She put an arm around his waist and gave him a hug. "You okay?"

He didn't reply.

She sighed, shivering.

"We should go in," he said, at last. "Do you want something to eat?"

She smiled. "Sure. If it's not any trouble."

He smiled wanly back. "It's never any trouble for me to make you something. You know that."

She shook her head as they headed back indoors. "We're supposed to be helping you," she whispered, her voice low to keep from waking anybody else up. "Not the other way around."

"I like cooking, and I like cooking for other people, so you are helping," he replied. "It's really no bother."

She sighed again. "Okay, but Mother's not going to be very pleased."

"She never is, these days," Rayden muttered, "but she doesn't have to know, at any rate."

Meimei gave him a look. "She'll know."

"Then I'll deal with it," he said, simply. "I'm not an invalid."

"Nobody says you are," Meimei retorted.

"They act like it." Rayden took off his outer robe, and hung it on a peg next to his straw hat. He rubbed a hand through his hair. "Meimei... oh, never mind."

"What?" she asked, taking a chair at the table. He shook his head at her, to drop the subject. But she persisted. "What's the matter? You can tell me. It'll go no further."

"Do you believe in ghosts?" he blurted, stopping to turn and look at her. She was surprised by the question.

"What? What are you talking about? Ghosts are something mortals believe in. You're--" She paled, and her mouth dropped. "You don't mean--spirits of deities, do you? You know that's impossible!"

"When ever someone says the word impossible, I get the urge to smack them," Rayden sighed, irritatedly. "You didn't answer my question."

Meimei paused, deep in thought. "No, I don't," she said firmly. "I don't know about mortals, but I do know that deities rejoin the Creator when they die. There's nothing left behind."

"Oh." He seemed downcast by her answer. She was about to remark something else, but then she stopped.

He turned back to the counter top. It was too awkward a silence; he had to break it. "One egg or two?" he asked, innocently.

  
Sonya Blade peeked out from behind the crates. She leaned back, resting her back against the warehouse wall. She picked up her walkie-talkie. "Jax. Come in, Jax."

"Sonya?" crackled back at her. "You in position?"

"Yeah," she replied. "You?"

"Roger. I've got three in my sights."

"I've got five. That only leaves two. Any ideas?" Sonya peeked again around the crates. "Hold it. I see someone else."

There were a group of men out on the pier, in a huddle, discussing something of great importance when a car drove up. It was the car of a rich, powerful and clearly out of place person: for one thing it was clean, and that was definitely suspicious out here on the waterfront. Someone got out. A man, well-dressed in a dark suit and tie, carrying a briefcase.

He was talking with the group huddled on the pier, and swung the briefcase over.

"He's exchanging the goods," Sonya hissed through her walkie-talkie. "Go!"

She leapt out of her hiding spot, gun raised. "Freeze!" she yelled, as loudly as she could. Off in the distance, she could hear her partner yelling as well. The men bolted, startled, with the exception of the newcomer. He glared at her, then dove back for the car. His brief-case was left on the pier.

Sonya knew Jax would take care of the pier goons; she went for the guy in the car. A few shots took out the tires; the car was stopped. She strolled up, ready to arrest him, and flung open the door. 

The car was empty.

"What the hell?" She frowned, and scanned the area around the vehicle. It was empty as well.

Jax came towards her, coming from behind one of the warehouses. Startled, she pulled her gun at him, but lowered it within a split second. "They're gone," he called at her, breathless. I had them cornered, I turned my back, and then poof! Vanished."

"Same here," Sonya replied, gesturing towards the empty seats. She rolled her eyes. "I hate this job."

"Somebody's got to do it, and you have to admit we're the best qualified," Jax replied with a grin. "'Course, all that really means is that we know what the hell is going on."

"I hate magic, I really do." Sonya holstered her gun, and started off towards the pier. "I wonder what they were trading." The briefcase, when she reached it, was unlocked. It clicked open, revealing nothing but air. "Empty. I wonder how he was going to explain that to his dealers."

"Probably wasn't. If he's able to disappear at will, he can probably convince a few greedy thugs he's got the money," Jax remarked.

"If he can disappear at will, why does he need thugs in the first place?" Sonya sat back on her heels, deep in thought. "It's been my experience that the more powerful a person is, the more reluctant they are to go through someone else."

Jax didn't know what to say, so he refrained from saying anything at all. Sonya stood back up. She dusted her hands off. "I have a funny feeling," she remarked, suddenly, looking up.

"What?" Jax looked behind him, but the piers were still deserted.

"If Johnny were here, he'd say my spider sense is going nuts," Sonya replied, drawing her gun. 

"I trust your instincts," Jax said simply, drawing his own gun. "Where?"

"Back at the car," Sonya replied, narrowing her eyes. Sure enough, the car spluttered to life, trying to drive off with four ruined tires. The two instantly gave chase.

"I knew it," Sonya huffed, stopping to fire again through the back windshield. "Illusionist."

The car screeched to a halt, then started backing up. It was coming right for them. They split up, and the car swerved, aiming directly for Jax, who had his back to the wall of the warehouse. He started running, trying to get to the alley where he'd have room, but he wouldn't have enough time. The car was going to hit him.

Sonya stopped in her tracks, paralysed. She could hear her heart hammering in her ears. She reached out towards the car, without thinking.

Directly in its way, the air rippled and shimmered. The car crashed, as though it had struck a wall, and crumpled on impact. Someone stumbled out, dazed, before the car burst into flames. Sonya looked towards him. And then suddenly, she was there.

The man, bewildered already and dazed from the collision panicked as Sonya Blade suddenly materialised from out of nowhere, the butt of her gun slamming into the side of his head. He dropped like a rock, literally not knowing what hit him.

Jax came to her side, breathing hard. He'd been panicked, too. "What the hell was that?" he asked her.

"I created a force-field in the car's path," Sonya answered.

"I know that--why'd you kill him? We need him for questioning!" Jax exclaimed. She glared and poked at the body with the toe of her boot.

"He's still alive. A concussion and some burns, as well as whiplash, but he'll recover," she replied calmly, staring down at him. "He's human."

"And we didn't just assume that because...?" Jax trailed off.

She glared at him again. "He could have been from another Realm. But he's not. He's human, and he's got magic powers. Illusionary ones. Made it seem as though he wasn't in the car, when he was."

"Oh." Jax nodded. "That would explain the empty briefcase."

"It would. Now all we have to do is figure out what he was intending to buy, and if it's connected with Shao Khan, like we think." Sonya pulled out a set of handcuffs from her belt. She knelt down, and did the man's hands.

"Is that necessary?" Jax asked. "It's not as though he's going anywhere."

Sonya didn't bother to answer him this time. She paused, straightening up, looking around her in confusion.

"Spidey sense?" Jax prompted. She nodded. "Hey--" he said suddenly. "I smell barbecue--"

In horror, both looked down, just in time to see the body spontaneously burst into flames. Within seconds the corpse was consumed from within, leaving only a thin film of ash.

"I thought all you said he had was whiplash!" Jax exclaimed.

Sonya kneeled over the ash, fingering it. "I hate my job," she muttered again. "This is definitely not good."

"Tell that to the Colonel," Jax replied, making a face. "That's not the way I want to go, personally."

"I don't think this guy had a choice," Sonya murmured. "Let's get back, write up the reports. There's nothing else to do today."

  
Back in the office, Sonya sighed, and saved her report while it was printing out. "There," she said to Jax, who was sitting farther over, at his own desk. "All I have to do is fax it, and we're done for the night."

"I'm not so sure," Jax replied. He was sitting on the edge of the desk, out of uniform, sipping from a mug of coffee. "What if they try again tonight?"

"They won't," Sonya replied, picking up the paper from the "out" end of the printer. She shifted over to the fax machine and set it up.

"How do you know?"

She looked at him.

"I hate it when you do that," he replied bitterly. "Why is it that you got to keep your powers, and I didn't?"

"Would you want to?" she asked him, pressing the "send" button.

"Not really. But that's not the point. You said you were going to keep them under wraps, and instead you're trotting them out every thirty seconds." He took a sip from his mug. "And causing cars to blow up, and teleporting, and all the other stuff you've been doing, is not very low profile."

"I know," she replied, angry; not with him but with herself. She took her hair out of its high ponytail and ran her hands through it. "But's not that easy. If you've trained for a life-time in the martial arts, how can you not use the same battle sense? The same reactions, the same training?"

"It's not the same thing."

"You're right. It's not the same thing at all." She sighed, shaking her head. "I can't even begin to explain it. But these past few weeks, it's like I've gained senses I never knew I had. As though I've been deaf all my life, but suddenly I can hear. Or see. Or touch or taste. It's like I've been in a coma, and now I'm awake. Don't you see? It's like asking someone to sleep for the rest of their lives when they've only just woken up." She rubbed her eyes, tiredly. "I was a fool to even think I could hide them. I must have been insane."

"No, you're just out of your league," Jax said, trying to reassure her. "How were you to know?"

"I should've," she said firmly, reacting negatively to the sympathy in his voice. "And, anyway, I shouldn't be so public with the powers, anyway. You're right."

He didn't say anything, but took another slow sip. "It's been a hard day," he said at last. "Maybe all we need is a hot shower and a good night's sleep."

"Maybe," she agreed, looking thoughtful. "I'm going to wait to see if they've received the report."

"Okay," Jax agreed. He set his empty mug down on his desk. "See you in the morning."

He wandered off towards his room, leaving Sonya alone in the office. Using a touch of telekinesis, she turned off the lights. She sat quietly in the darkened room, moonlight streaming in one of the windows, and let her mind wander.

Almost instantly, she could feel Rayden. He was the Lord of the Realm; he was the most powerful deity in it, so he was the first thing she could feel. Then she noticed his mother, and sisters. And then Johnny.

_Sonya?_ came a tired voice. _What's the matter?_

It was Rayden. Obviously he could sense her, too.

_Oh, nothing_, she blurted, embarrassed at the mistake. _I was just experimenting_.

_Oh_. The mindlink faded, and Sonya hastily pulled her mind back into place.

There was a sudden beep, that startled her, and then a fax came through the machine. She was tempted to turn on some of the lights, but found she could read just as easily in the dark. Will the surprises never end.

The fax was from HQ. They had received her report. And they had something to add.

An artifact had been recovered. It was a knife, made of a material not found on Earth. They were baffled, but thought Sonya might be able to figure it out.

They were right. She knew instantly about the weapon the moment she saw its picture, sent through the fax. She had seen it before. In Outworld.

On Shao Khan.

She muttered a few chinese curses under her breath learned from Liu, and got up from her chair. Jax was probably asleep by now. That wouldn't do. _Jax!_

It only took him about thirty seconds before he flew into the office, wide-awake. "What? What's the matter? Sonya? Why are all the lights off?"

She flicked them all on instantly. He started blinking, so she turned half of them off again. "Here. Look at this."

He took the paper. "Yeah? It's a knife. So?"

She glared at him. "Don't you remember it?"

"Why should I?"

She stared at him. "You were--wait, that's not right. You never did come to Outworld with us, did you?"

"No," he replied irritatedly, "and I wish everybody would just stop assuming that."

"Sorry," she admitted quickly, before pressing on. "This is Shao Khan's knife. It was made in Outworld, which means that any number of magic abilities could be attached to it. This is what our guys are after."

"Are you sure?" he yawned. She glared at him. "Sorry. I forgot."

She sighed and took the paper back, starting to pace. "We've got to make sure it doesn't fall in to the wrong hands," she said. "In the possession of someone with powers like Shang Tsung, anything could happen."

"Who?" Jax blurted, but she didn't answer him.

  
Meimei was walking down the hallway inside the Temple briskly, when she felt a strange presence behind her. She turned, but the corridor was empty. "Rayden?" she called out, confused. She had very limited mind-reading abilities, since she had no powers to speak of.

The air started to shimmer, and ripple, and then someone seemed to step sideways out of nowhere. It was a tall, thin man, dressed in shimmering green and black. He carried a long staff, and a cape swished around his ankles.

"Jikan Tai," Meimei said in relief, giving him a slight nod of respect. "You startled me."

He took a step towards her, and something in his eyes unnerved her. They were a strange shade of green to begin with, but she could almost see something in the pupils, a reflection, a spark. She wasn't sure. Meimei started to back away slowly, wanting to put as much distance between herself and the visitor, but he grabbed her by the arm. "Guardian!" she cried, genuinely frightened, "Let go of me!"

"Where's Rayden?" the Guardian asked her, his grip around her arm tightening. "I must find him!"

"I--" Meimei tried to pull away, but he was too strong. "I don't know where he is! Let me go!"

"He's right here," Rayden said suddenly, appearing in the corridor. "What's so important that you have to frighten my sister, Jikan Tai?"

"Rayden!" The Guardian let his grip on Meimei drop suddenly, as though she'd suddenly became red-hot. "Forgive me."

"I'm not the one you should be asking," Rayden replied, but the mortal continued, nearly breathless.

"I need to talk to you," the Guardian said, excitedly. "I have made a most interesting discovery. I had to tell you."

Rayden sighed. Meimei had backed up to put as much distance between herself and the Guardian, and that included putting Rayden in the middle. He turned to her. "Where's Mother?" he asked.

"She's watching the boys," Meimei answered, keeping an eye on her near-assailant. "Lin's with her."

"Go find her. Tell her that Jikan Tai and I have some things to discuss." Rayden turned back to face the mortal. "Well?"

"You need to come with me," the Guardian said quickly. "I can't tell you--I need to show you, for you to really understand." Rayden paused for a moment, taking his bearings of the young man; finally he made up his mind and nodded.

"Rayden," Meimei said suddenly, tugging on his arm. "Don't go. Something's not right."

Her older brother looked her strangely. "I can't sense anything."

"Look in his eyes," she whispered, urgently. The god did so, seeing nothing but concern in the odd green eyes. He turned back to his sister, confused. She drew back, shaking her head. "Sorry. I thought I saw--I don't know what I thought I saw."

"It's okay," Rayden put an hand on her shoulder. "I'll be back in a few hours, I assume, and I'll fill you in. Don't let Mother worry about me."

Jikan Tai coughed, and raised his staff as high as he could in the enclosed space. The beam was starting to glow.

"Rayden," Meimei whispered again, a touch of panic creeping in, "I don't trust him."

"It's all right," he replied. "I do."

There was a flash of purple light, and then they were gone.

  
Rayden did not feel right. There was something very, very wrong with where Jikan Tai had taken them.

It was a forest, an ancient woodland, with trees so high their tops were out of view. Puddles were scattered underneath the immense conifers. The forest stretched out infinitely in all directions.

But it was not the scenery that felt so _wrong_. It was sudden emptiness, a sudden lack of contact with anything around him that caused Rayden to feel a wave of panic and a surge of anxiety. He willed himself to calm down. There was no reason for such a strong reaction to such an obviously peaceful place.

Jikan Tai was breathing with an air of contentment, as though he had been cooped up in a tiny, stuffy room. "Ah," he said, gesturing wide. "It truly lets you feel alive."

Rayden didn't feel truly alive. He felt very small, and very weak. He realised that he couldn't sense anything around him; he was mentally blind.

The mortal seemed to become aware of the god's discomfort. "Rayden?" he asked, setting his staff down, leaning it against the trunk of a tree. "Are you okay? You look... pale."

Rayden leaned against a tree himself. His head was swimming and pins and needles were creeping along his arms. "This place... where is it?"

"Nowhere," the Guardian replied, with a slight smile. He was unclipping his cape from his shoulders. "In order for a place to _be_ somewhere, there must be somewhere _else_ for it to be in relation _to_."

Rayden stared at him, uncomprehending. Jikan Tai spread his cape on the cool, long grass, and sat down. Rayden sat down as well, feeling some of the blood returning to his head. "Don't worry about it," the mortal added, finally. "It's not important."

"Not important?" The god rubbed his eyes. "Jikan Tai--I have never felt this cut off from everything ever before. Something is wrong. I can't sense _anything_."

"I know. That's because nothing else exists," Jikan Tai replied casually. "It's hard to explain, and it's taken most of my life to truly grasp it--but this place _is_ everywhere and nowhere simultaneously."

"Now you're losing me."

The Guardian sighed in frustration, and flipped his hand through his bangs. "I didn't come here to debate philosophy with you. I came to tell you my plan."

"Your plan." Now that Rayden was sitting down, he didn't feel as out-of-sorts as before. He still couldn't sense anyone else but Jikan Tai, and he still felt cut off, but the sense of panic was beginning to recede.

Jikan Tai turned, and his eyes were shining. "I've spent a long time meditating, and thinking about the future."

"The future?" Rayden asked, quietly.

"The future... the past--at what point does which become which? When does the present become the past, or become the future?" The Guardian gestured with one gloved hand towards the trees. "They are the answer, Rayden. Under each tree lies a pool, and each pool reveals more answers. I figured it out."

"Figured what out?" Rayden was becoming irritated. Jikan Tai was normally a sensibly, very grounded person, who spoke in carefully measured sentences, not rambling incoherently like this.

The Guardian leaned over, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Never."

"Never?" Rayden repeated.

"They never change. One is the other is the other; they are all the same." The mortal smiled, a slight smile of one who has seen the light. "And if they are all the same, then they can easily be affected. Changed."

"_What_...?" Rayden stared at the Guardian. "You're talking nonsense."

"No, it's perfect sense. It's impossible--for you--to change the past. Agreed?"

"Agreed," the deity nodded.

"The future is very easy to change, since it hasn't happened yet." Jikan Tai trailed off, and again the God of Thunder nodded. "But... if they are the same, then they must both be subject to change. Correct?"

"You've lost me again." Rayden shook his head. "Jikan Tai, I know you're exposed to much more knowledge about time than I will ever know, but you're not making any sense. I wish you could just get to the point, instead of talking in circles." He shivered. Something was making him uneasy, and he wanted to go back to the Temple.

"Hiko is dead," Jikan Tai said suddenly. That caused the god's head to whip up. He stared at the mortal, but the Guardian was gazing off into the distance, beyond where the trees were gradually obscured by a thick mist. "Nova is dead. Liu Kang is dead. Because of me."

"Jikan Tai," Rayden said patiently, his voice dry, "You know that's not true. You have to stop blaming yourself."

The mortal glared. "There is a saying: 'Mistakes are only mistakes if you do not correct them', true?"

"What has that got to do with anything!" Rayden exploded, getting to his feet. "You've dragged me out here, wherever here is, to ramble on about vague points of time, and remind me that three of the people I care about the most are dead, and wallow in guilt. I want you to tell me what ever you had to tell me, and then let me go back to the Temple."

An odd change came over Jikan Tai. It was as though a shadow, a curtain fell over his face; his expression did not change, but something covered over any emotion he showed. If the eyes are the window of the soul, then the curtains were drawn. "I am sorry, Lord Rayden. I have been on my own for a long period of time, now. I am not used to explaining my thoughts to anyone else."

Rayden instantly felt chagrined by the outburst, but before he could say anything, the Guardian got to his feet, and stood with his back to the deity.

"I can bring them back," he said, finally, his hands held behind his back. He looked as though he was simply studying the landscape. "I figured out how to."

Rayden didn't say anything. He couldn't. The idea was so preposterous...

Jikan Tai seemed to be able to tell what the god was thinking. He looked at the deity over his shoulder. "I can do it."

"I don't think so," Rayden replied, shaking his head. "No one but the Creator can bring the dead back to life."

"I cannot bring them back to life," the mortal admitted. "I can, however, prevent them from dying at all."

This caused Rayden a touch of shock. "Jikan Tai--do you know what you're saying? That's... you would have to change the entire flow of history for _the entire Omniverse_. Not just Earth. For everyone."

Jikan Tai smiled, slightly. "I know. I have no problem doing that, if it means Nova and the Lady Hiko live again."

Rayden took a deep calming breath. What the Guardian was talking about was ludicrous. It was completely out of the question. And yet, to be able to see Hiko again--to never have lost her in the first place--caused a pang of grief so sharp it cut through to his soul.

Jikan Tai held out a hand, and the staff suddenly appeared in it, its red gem glowing with an internal light. "I am prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice, Rayden. I will do it, for Nova, and Hiko."

"The ultimate..." Rayden trailed off, finding his voice at last. "What are you talking about?"

Jikan Tai held up his staff, and there was burst of red light before a vision appeared before them, in the air. Rayden recognised it immediately, and wished he hadn't. It was Hiko, and himself, and the Guardian, gathered around Nova, trying to revive her while she lay dying. They did revive her--the cost being Hiko's life. The vision lacked sound, but the god knew exactly what they were saying.

_I can't help her any more, my healing abilities won't do anything more--_

_--I can transfer--_

_You can't! It might kill both of you!_

_It's our only hope..._

"Stop that," Rayden said hoarsely. "Why are you doing this?"

Jikan Tai let the visions fade away, and the staff stopped glowing. "This is the point. This is where everything that is, becomes."

"Becomes what?" Rayden snapped. "Stop talking in riddles!"

"This is the point where everything becomes inevitable!" Jikan Tai roared. "This is where everything is set in stone! Here! This moment! _When Hiko makes the transfer, she sets all the events in motion_. All we have to do is change that one moment in time, Rayden. All we have to do is fix that one mistake, and then everything will change. For the better." There was a glint in the mortal's eyes, and Meimei's warning came back to him.

Rayden stared at the Guardian, fearing for his sanity. He started to back away. "Jikan Tai, you're not thinking straight. You need to calm down, and think about what you're saying."

"I know what I'm talking about," the Guardian growled, objecting to the tone that Rayden was using him. He grabbed the god by the arm and shoved him, hard, to the side.

"What are you--" Rayden began, before his feet touched the edge of one of the pools under the trees. He slipped, and fell in.

  
Sonya Blade watched him out of the corner of her eye. He was making his way through the crowd to her. She smiled slightly, and made herself a little more comfortable up on the high bar stool.

He was almost four feet away when he came to a dead stop, and started looking around him. Curious, she followed his gaze to one of the men sitting at the tables on the edge the dance floor. It was Jax.

Swearing in her head, Sonya tried to remain composed and detached. She had to act as though she wasn't Jax's partner. Finally, her prospect decided that Jax had nothing to do with Sonya, and started forward again.

"Miss Blade?" he asked, in a thick, Chinese accent. She nodded. "I have an envelope for you. From our... friend." He withdrew it from his jacket. It had a single word--_Blade_--scrawled across the front. He handed it to her, and then left, making his way through the crowd.

She hopped off her stool, and already Jax was on his way over. "You nearly blew everything," she hissed.

"I wasn't doing anything," he protested.

"You scream "back-up" just sitting down," she retorted, flipping the letter over and opening the back-flap. She drew out a single page, covered in chinese characters written in a heavy hand. "Dammit. Can you read Chinese?"

"Can't even speak it," Jax admitted.

"We'll have to find somebody who does--" She started to say something, but then stopped, her face clouding over.

"What? What's the matter?"

"Nothing. I... I just thought for a second about asking Liu to read this for us. Never mind. It's not important." Sonya stuffed the envelope in the dress bag that she was carrying. "We should get going."

They started for the door, both preoccupied with their thoughts. So they could be forgiven for not noticing the two men that began to follow them.

  
"We could fax it back to HQ. Wang can read Chinese, can't he?" Jax asked, as they hurried out into the night air.

"Yeah," she admitted. "But I'd rather figure it out without involving HQ."

Jax sighed. "You can't do _everything_ yourself, you know."

"I can try." She stopped suddenly, tensing up.

"What is it?" he asked, his voice dropping.

She shook her head and started walking. "Never mind. Thought I heard--felt something."

They turned the corner and again Sonya felt something in the back of her mind. But this was a different feeling, and a familiar one. There was somebody very hostile behind her. As she walked around the corner, she pulled Jax to the side and against the wall.

"Someone's following us," she hissed. "You've got a gun?"

"Yeah," he replied. "You?"

"No, but that's not going to stop me," she reminded him. Now they could hear footsteps, sounding on the asphalt. She checked around her. The side street was deserted, so she grabbed Jax's hand and teleported them away.

  
The two hired guns turned the corner, but the sidestreet was completely empty. "Where'd they go?" the first asked. "They weren't that far ahead."

"I don't know," his partner replied. "But Boss said that the woman was tricky. They could be anywhere."

"Americans," grunted the first. "They always have to make everything so difficult."

Someone, a woman, yelled something in English at them. They both turned, to find that the Americans were behind them--how did they manage that?--and the man had his gun drawn. The woman snapped something else at them, but not knowing any English beyond a few meaningless slogans, they could only shake their heads. They recognised what the man told them, however. He gestured with his gun and they raised their hands.

  
"This is just perfect," Sonya grumbled. "You'd think I'd have picked the language up, by now."

"Maybe you're just not a verbal person," Jax remarked dryly. When she shot him a look, he smiled. "I told you."

She shook her head. "How do we question someone we can't speak to?"

"I don't know," Jax replied honestly. "Maybe we should hire a translator."

"I'm sure HQ would love to have another person on the payroll," Sonya grumbled. The two men were inching away, thinking that their captors were not paying attention; but a single gesture from Jax both proved them wrong and rooted them to the spot.

"Well, we can't keep them here all night," Jax reminded, her, uselessly. "Why can't you just read their minds, or something?"

Sonya paused. "Can... can I do that? To a mortal that I don't know?"

"I don't know!" Jax exclaimed. "Just try it. It's worth a shot, at least."

Sonya closed her eyes and reached out with her mind towards the two men, as if they were Rayden. She'd practised on Rayden before, and it had seem to come naturally...

  
The two men watched as the Americans bickered with each other. The one holding the gun was keeping an eye on them, so they couldn't try to escape. Finally, the woman shut up and closed her eyes.

"What is she doing?" asked the first man, in a hushed voice.

"I don't know," the other replied. "Magic? I hope not. I hate magic."

"It's a pain in the ass," the other agreed. Nothing seemed to be happening; the woman was just standing there, her eyes closed. Suddenly she gasped and fell to her feet. In an instant, her partner jumped to catch her. The hired men exchanged glances; they ran, each in a different direction.

  
"Sonya!" Jax exclaimed, holding her up. The two goons ran off, separately. It would be impossible to find out what they wanted. But that's not what Jax was thinking about. "Sonya! What happened?"

"Rayden?" Sonya whispered, her eyes wide, as she started to sit up. "Rayden... something's happened to Rayden... I was trying to..." She scrunched her eyes closed. "I... something happened--"

"I've gathered that already," Jax muttered. He pulled her up, and let her lean on him. "Come on, let's get you home."

"Something's happened to Rayden," she mumbled again.

"We'll figure it out after we get home. Don't worry about it. He's a big god, he can take care of himself." Jax shifted Sonya around to support her weight. She was disoriented and her knees were loose. Her partner wondered if he would have to carry her. But after a few moments, she seemed to pull herself together and they started back.

  
There was a storm building overhead. Jax had heard the weather reports on the English-language news, it was supposed to be clear for the rest of the week. He knew that weather reports were almost always wrong, but something told him that this wasn't a normal storm. Call it instinct.

Sonya was half-conscious; she seemed to be weaving in and out. Jax gave up trying to drag her back to their base; he decided just to shell out for the cab. Inside the taxi, she seemed to calm down slightly but she kept rambling about Rayden and something that happened to him. 

Jax paid the driver--and no doubt overtipped him, he was in no mood to count change--and pulled Sonya out onto the street. By this time she was completely incomprehensible. He got her up the stairs and into the set of flats that was their base. No sooner than they were up the first flight of stairs did she faint, completely, and he resorted to carrying her. Getting in the apartment was a hassle, and he finally sighed with relief when he dumped her in the bed. She was out cold.

He stumbled back out into the main part of the flat, which was were their office was set up. A fax had come through while they were out.

Artifact stolen, it read, simply. Contact killed. Advise caution.

_That's just like Johannson_, Jax thought wearily. _Give us only the bare essentials and hope we don't screw things up_.

While Jax and Sonya were stationed in Hong Kong, the HQ was back in the States, far out of the reach of any danger. It bothered Jax, but there was nothing he could do about it, and being a good soldier, he didn't complain. He crumpled the fax up and tossed it into the waste paper basket.

"Jax?" Sonya was standing in the doorway, rubbing her temples. "What happened? Why are we back here?"

"I carried you home after you fainted," he replied succinctly.

"Oh. We have to go." She shook her head as if to clear it. "We have to go, now."

"Go? Go where?" Jax asked. "You've--"

"I don't matter. We have to get to the Temple, something's happened to Rayden." Sonya grabbed him by the wrist and he realised at once that she meant to teleport him.

"Hold it," he snapped, breaking free of her grip. "We've just got a fax from HQ. The knife's gone; their contact--what's his name--got killed. Something big is going down, and we can't run off like that."

Sonya paused, considering. "The knife was Shao Khan's," she said. "Rayden might be able to tell us about it. But first, we have to help him."

"Help him with what?" Jax exclaimed. "What did he tell you?"

"Nothing," Sonya replied, simply, looking at him. There was something in her eyes that he couldn't recognise. "I was in contact with him for only a brief second, and then there was a shock, and then nothing." She shivered.

Jax stared at her. "You really think it's important?" he asked, quietly. She nodded. He held out his hand. "Then let's go."

  
When they appeared in front of the Temple of the Order of Light, it was raining. Very, very hard.

Sonya and Jax ran quickly to the main door, shaking off as much water as they could. A young monk was standing sentry at the door. He leapt to his feet and chattered at them in Chinese.

"Oh no," Jax groaned. "Here we go again."

Before either of them could react, another monk, far older than the sentry and very familiar looking, came running. "Sonya!" the monk exclaimed. "And...Jax?"

Sonya bowed. "It's Liu's Grandfather," she said to Jax, who bowed as well.

"You have come because of Rayden?" the monk continued, looking worried. "We are all praying for him. Something terrible has happened, but we don't know what." The monk gestured to the heavy rain. "It was very bright and sunny not more than twenty minutes ago," Liu's Grandfather continued. "And then this--as well, we have seen one of the Goddesses."

"Goddesses?" Sonya asked.

The old monk bowed his head. "When Lord Rayden has visitors, we do not pry. But there are Goddesses living in the Temple, now, as well as small demons. We rarely see them, but they are there. One of the brothers saw a strange woman faint, while he was gardening. She simply appeared, fainted, and then disappeared. That is when the storm started." He looked up at them. "I am sorry to keep you like this. You must come inside, we will dry you, and--"

"I'd rather just see Rayden, please," Sonya interrupted. "We've come a long way, and anyway, rain isn't going to hurt us."

The monk bowed again. "This way." He mumbled something to the sentry, who bowed again. Liu's Grandfather shuffled inside, and they followed him.

He led them through a long tunnel that led to the courtyard. He pointed at the far wall, where there was simple wooden door. "That is the way to Lord Rayden's."

"Thank you." Sonya bowed again, and hurried through the courtyard, ignoring the rain, with Jax right behind her. She reached the door.

"Hey, it's got no doorknob or latch," Jax exclaimed. He looked up, blinking through the raindrops. "And this looks a little small to be the place I remember."

"It's bigger on the inside," Sonya said, as the door swung open of its own accord. "It's the home of a god, remember?"

"How could I forget," Jax mumbled as he stepped in.

  
They were met at the door by a small person. 

"Hello," Jax said slowly, not sure what to make of the small, vaguely-chinese looking child. "Do you speak English?"

The child, who had black silky hair and thin blue eyes, stared up at them, without saying a word.

"It's not a mortal," Sonya whispered.

"Oh," Jax whispered back, more confused. "Then whose child is it?"

"I don't know." Sonya regarded the child with a touch of distaste. "I don't like children."

"I never would have guessed," Jax remarked dryly. He got down to his knees. "Hello there. What's your name?"

"Yueh," the child replied.

"Gesundheit. Now, what's your name?" Jax repeated.

"Yueh!" the boy exclaimed. "My name is Yueh."

"Now we're getting somewhere," Jax began again when another small child appeared from around the corner. He was identical to the other. "Oh, no. Twins."

"My name's Jih!" the boy exclaimed happily. He squinted at Jax. "Are you a mortal?"

"Yes, I am," Jax said slowly. "Who's your mother?"

"Meimei," the boys replied. Sonya and Jax exchanged looks; they had no idea who that was. Yueh looked up at Sonya solemnly. "You're here to see Uncle Rayden."

"Yes, I am," Sonya answered, quietly. "We both are. Where is he?"

"With Mama and Grandma," Jih told her. "We can show you." He started off, walking a few steps and then turning to see if they were following him. When he saw they weren't, he gestured impatiently.

"Uncle Rayden's very sick," Yueh said quietly, before running, past his brother, around the corner.

"Well, that clears that up," Jax muttered, before he and Sonya started to follow their small guides.

  
It was a small wooden door, not unlike the others of the Temple. Sonya felt a sudden hesitation in entering. True, she had visited Rayden's section of the Temple many times, but she had never gone to his _room_ before. 

"For godsakes," Jax snapped, when she hesitated. "I don't think he's going to mind." He stepped in front of her and pushed the door open. Jih and Yueh darted around him, running in first. Sonya looked around her. This room carried the scent of incense, and it was decorated with pictures, from many different cultures and time-periods. Rayden himself lay sleeping, or unconscious, in his bed in the center of the room.

"Mama!" the boys both cried, dashing to one of the seated figures. There was three goddesses, sitting on chairs in the room. 

One Sonya recognised as Lindara, Goddess of Plants. She was sitting next to the headboard, pressing a cold cloth to Rayden's forehead. She looked up when she saw the mortal, but didn't say anything.

The one that the boys ran to was sitting across from Lindara, looking woozy. She was very pale, almost green from sickness and had long white hair that was put up in a messy bun. She was being supported by the third goddess, an older deity dressed in a misty white dress, with green ribbons entwined in her still-black hair.

The elder stood, looking at Sonya and Jax imperiously. "I'm Sonya Blade," the former-mortal said, suppressing the urge to announce her rank. "This is my partner, Jax."

"I am Suyuan, Goddess of Winds," the deity replied solemnly. Sonya immediately chided herself; she should have announced her power. Oh well, too late now.

"We came to see Rayden," Jax said, feeling out of place. The three women radiated something that he couldn't put his finger on, and it unnerved him.

"He's unconscious," Lindara said softly, looking at Sonya. "He just appeared, and we haven't been able to get him to wake up."

"I heard him yell," the second goddess murmured. The way the boys hovered around, the two visitors took her to be Meimei. "I was watching one of the monks, and then I heard Rayden, and I fainted. Mother brought me in."

Suyuan nodded.

"That's what happened to me," Sonya told them. At once Suyuan got to her feet, after making sure that Meimei could support herself. She strode over and touched Sonya's forehead. Almost at once Sonya could feel the goddess reaching out towards her, in her mind.

"You've got quite strong mental powers," Suyuan said, drawing her hand away. "I can understand why you heard him. I do not understand why Meimei did."

"Didn't you hear him?" Jax asked.

"I did; and so did Lin, but Meimei and Sonya were the only ones who reacted the way they did." Suyuan took her place back by her son's side. "I wish we knew what happened. I can't reach him, at all."

Sonya stood at the foot of the bed. Rayden was barely moving. Even his eyes weren't shifting back and forth. She reached out and touched his foot, but drew her hand away slowly when he failed to respond. "Whatever it was, it scared the hell out of me, and I was getting it second hand."

Meimei looked up at her. "I got a terrible wave of pain, and then I blanked out. Do you think--?"

"There must be a connection," Sonya confirmed. "Where was Rayden before he fainted?"

"He went off with Jikan Tai," Meimei growled. "I knew something wasn't right, I knew it--"

"Hold it." Jax had been keeping out of the conversation, but at last there was a topic that he knew about. "Jikan Tai wouldn't hurt Rayden."

"Well then, who did?" Meimei began fiercely when her mother touched her elbow, gently. 

"Calm down, dear. We'll find out what happened, and who ever is responsible." Suyuan sighed, and rubbed her eyes tiredly. Yueh climbed up onto her lap and she cuddled him.

"Why won't Uncle Rayden wake up?" he asked, settling in.

"Yeah. He's not supposed to sleep in the _daytime_!" Jih exclaimed. "Only babies do that!"

"Boys," Meimei said sharply, "I want you to go wait outside in the hall. And don't bother the monks. Do you hear me?"

"Yes, Mama," they said reluctantly, Yueh sliding off his grandmother's lap. They both ran to the door and then outside.

"I'm going to see if Tai Hou can't come pick them up," Meimei told her mother. "Get them out of our hair while all this is going on."

"That's probably not necessary, and anyway Tai Hou would have more problems with them in the way than we would." Suyuan got to her feet and started pacing. "The first place we must check is with Jikan Tai."

"If anybody can find him," Jax interrupted. "He could be anywhere."

"If he's alive, we'll be able to sense him," Suyuan replied. "I don't have the range, but Kerlan--"

"No, he could be out of the Omniverse by now," Jax corrected. "Or out of the timestream. Or even back in time. He could be anywhere."

The dubious looks from the goddesses confirmed that they had no idea what Jikan Tai was capable of.

"You don't find Jikan Tai, he finds you," Sonya summed up the situation. "If he knew anything and could help, he'd be here, right now."

"So what are you saying?" Suyuan asked.

"I'm saying that chances are whatever got Rayden got him too. He may be unable to contact us." Sonya paused, deep in thought. She turned to Jax. "Where do you think he might have taken Rayden? You know his powers the best, out of all of us."

Jax nodded. For a while, Jax had shared the Guardian's powers, and learned more about the nature of Time than he had ever wanted to. But he didn't learn a great deal about the Guardian himself. "I think... well, I'm pretty sure he mustn't have taken Rayden back in time; otherwise Rayden wouldn't have been able to teleport back here. So Jikan Tai must still be in the Omniverse somewhere."

"Of course he's in the Omniverse," Lindara said sharply, looking at him as if for the first time. "There's nowhere else to be."

"Actually--" Jax began, but Sonya shook her head. There was no point in starting _that_ argument over again.

"None of this is helping Rayden any," Meimei exclaimed suddenly. "We've got to find some way to bring him out!"

"Meimei," Suyuan said soothingly, "you need to calm down. We're doing all that can be done. You know that."

Meimei nodded, looking close to tears.

Sonya, not surprisingly, was starting to feel very uncomfortable.

"Maybe Johnny--" Jax began.

"Johnny!" Sonya blurted, surprised. "Of course! Johnny might have been affected as well! We've got to find him."

"Any ideas...?" Jax trailed off. Sonya nodded, and stretched out with her thoughts again.

_Come on, Cage, I know you're out there..._

"Got him. He's okay, I think." Sonya stretched out her hand. Jax, knowing the drill, took it. "We'll bring Johnny back here. Let me know if anything happens."

Suyuan, and Meimei nodded. Lindara just sighed and adjusted the cloth on her brother's forehead, not looking anyone in the eye.

  
"This is the life," Johnny Cage, God of Fire, said as he swung in his hammock. "Hey. I'm out of punch." Tiburius, one of his new mortals, took his glass and replaced it with a filled one, complete with a slice of fruit on the rim. "Thanks, Tibs."

Tiburius nodded. "Anything else, Lord?"

"No, thank you," Johnny replied, lowering his sunglasses down and sighing deeply. "Ah. I was born to be a god, I really was."

Tiburius bowed deeply. "May I return to the sea, Lord? The sun is too hot for me."

"Of course," Johnny waved one hand dismissively. "Don't even bother to ask next time. I'm omnipotent, remember? I can get my own punch."

"It is an honour to serve," Tiburius argued.

"Nonsense. You go home, I'll be fine." Johnny twisted around to make sure that his new mer-friend was following the god's advice. He was. He made his way from the grove to the beach, diving into the waves and swimming away. "That's better."

He settled in, closing his eyes. In the few short days he had spent in Maresium, he'd completely forgotten any trace of stress. Earth itself was starting to slip away, into the realm of bad dreams and over-exaggerations.

He heard footsteps coming through the grove towards him. "Tibs?" he called, not bothering to sit up. "Back already?"

"Just when I thought you couldn't get any lazier--" The familiar voice trailed off as suddenly someone grabbed his hammock and flipped him over. Johnny and his punch went flying. When he managed to get his head out of the sand, he looked up.

"Sonya!" he exclaimed. "And Jax! What are you doing here?"

"Giving you a dose of reality," Sonya snapped. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Enjoying a nap?" Johnny replied, confused.

Jax was looking around in appreciation. "Nice place. St. Martin's?"

"No, Maresium," Johnny answered, getting to his feet and brushing the sand from himself.

"Never heard of it. Remind me to book my next vacation here. I figure I've got about, oh, three months worth of unused vacation time." Jax grinned.

"It's not on Earth," Sonya told him, irritated at Johnny, although the deity hardly knew why. "This is Maresium, Hiko's Realm."

"It's my Realm, now," Johnny corrected her. "Great, isn't it?"

"It's just like you," Sonya snapped. "Rayden's unconscious and Jikan Tai is missing and all you can think about is your tan."

"Woah, wait a second," he said, holding up his hands. "What's happened?"

Sonya looked at him, studying his face. "You don't know, do you?"

"Know what?" The deity looked to Jax for an explanation but the mortal didn't offer one.

"Rayden's been hurt, somehow. He's unconscious, and we can't get him to wake up," Sonya said, her voice quiet and sombre. "I thought--that maybe you'd heard him."

"I haven't seen him since that day at the Temple," Johnny said, seriously. "I haven't talked to anybody except a few Maresians since last week."

"We thought that--" Sonya trailed off, suddenly hesitant.

"She heard Rayden, and fainted," Jax filled in, recognising the embarrassment. "Meimei, Rayden's sister, fainted too. We were wondering if you had."

"I haven't heard anything," Johnny replied honestly. "If I had, I would have gone to see what had happened."

"Can you come to Earth anyway, help us figure out what's gone wrong?" Sonya asked him.

"Of course. No problem." Johnny brushed a final few flecks from his shirt. "Let's--Sonya?"

Sonya had her head cocked to one side, as though she was listening to someone from far away. "He's awake," she said suddenly. "He just came to." She looked at Johnny and Jax. "Let's get going."

  
Meimei and Lindara sat on opposite sides of the room. Meimei sat in the overstuffed armchair with her hands in her lap, her eyes closed. She still felt sick to her stomach.

Lindara had stopped placing cool cloths on her brother's forehead. They weren't doing much good, at any rate. Now she perched on a wooden stool, one of Rayden's hands in her own. She sent him healing energy, trying to help him through whatever it was that was happening.

"Meimei?" she asked, her voice a hushed whisper.

"Yes?" Her older sister looked up. She sat forward excitedly. "Is he--"

Lindara shook her head. "No. I didn't mean to get your hopes up. I was just... thinking."

Meimei leaned back into her chair, curling her legs up under her. A blanket, one of Rayden's souvenirs from Creator-knew-where hung over the end and she wrapped it around her legs. "Thinking about what?"

Lindara looked down at the closed eyes of her eldest brother. The only brother she'd known. "I was thinking about Nova. And Lightning."

Meimei didn't reply, but the colour which had been returning to her cheeks drained away. "Lightning," she repeated, trailing off. She struggled to find her voice. "Why?"

"I wish I knew what happened," Lindara replied. "I wish I knew how Nova and Hiko died. Why and how and when. I was in my Realm, cut off from everywhere else when it happened; all I know is that I turned up here and they were dead."

"I don't know what was happening myself," Meimei admitted. "I was in Officina. The boys were hysterical, they couldn't understand what was going on. Mother and I were trying to calm them down. Naturalis was in a flap, he kept rambling about his plants."

"I went to the funeral," Lin continued softly. Her voice was straining. "I could never understand the point before. We don't have funerals, and I never thought about why mortals do. But when I was there, listening to them talk about Liu Kang, and Nova and Hiko, I realised that they were gone."

Meimei looked downcast, but she didn't say anything, just let her sister continue.

"Even now, I keep expecting to see Nova. We weren't great friends, but I used to see her in the Bar a lot. She helped me with my mortals. She gave me the answer. I wanted to tell her that I was thankful, that I couldn't have figured it out without her help. But I can't." Lindara squeezed her eyes together to keep from crying. "And as bad as I feel... Rayden--" she stopped to wipe her oozing tears on the cuff of her elaborate green robe. "Rayden--and Hiko--"

With a slight pop of displacing air, Meimei appeared, standing beside her baby sister. She wrapped the blanket around Lindara's shoulders. "Go sit down for a little while. I'll give Rayden energy. You need a break."

Lin nodded. She got to her feet, stiffly, and started for the door when she felt a tingle along her spine.

"Lin?" Rayden asked groggily, his eyes opening a crack, "Where are you going?"

  
"Grandma!" Jih called, hopping up and down on one foot. "Can I have a cookie?"

Suyuan sighed. At any other time she would have refused him. But now she simply gave him one from the jar. He took it and started to munch gleefully.

Yueh, the more outwardly-aware of the two twins, sat quietly at the kitchen table. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he knew it was a bad situation and one that didn't require a cookie. Jih, noting the expression on his brother's face, stopped hopping up and down. He didn't stop munching, but now it was more subdued. He climbed up onto one of the chairs. Suyuan sat down as well, sighing heavily and tucking one of her hair wisps behind her ears.

Suddenly Yueh pricked up. "Mama!" he exclaimed. "I can hear Mama!"

Suyuan wasn't paying attention to him, however. She was already up from the table and flying from the room, towards her son.

  
When Sonya teleported them back, Rayden was awake and sitting up. Johnny started to exclaim something, but stopped mid-breath and simply nodded hello instead.

"He just woke up," Lindara exclaimed, her hand holding her brother's tightly. Both she and Meimei were at his side, the relief emanating from them almost palpably. Suyuan was perched in the armchair, one of the twins on her lap, the other sitting on the foot of the bed.

"Look, Mama!" the one on the bed blurted. "More people!" Johnny stared at the child in confusion, but no others paid him any heed.

Sonya was studying Rayden carefully. His eyes were half-closed, and he looked terrible. He was very pale--paler than normal, she revised--and seemed...she couldn't put her finger on the exact term.

"My God, Rayden, you look like a zombie!" Johnny exclaimed, the first in the room to find his tongue (with the exception of Jih).

The others glared at him furiously, but Rayden himself did not respond other than a slight, weary shrug of the shoulders.

"He's very tired," Suyuan said, her tone very measured. Clearly, she did not like Johnny nor Johnny's comments. "He's been through a lot. He should probably get some rest--"

"He probably needs something to eat," Meimei added, while Lindara exclaimed:

"We should get him to Medicalis right away!"

Rayden himself simply shook his head. "Mother's right. I just want to get some sleep."

"But--" Sonya started to protest by Jax took her by the elbow and shook his head. Clearly, the mortal agreed with the Goddess of Winds; Rayden needed some rest. She glared at her partner but nodded slightly, and withdrew her comment.

"We'll stay in the Temple," Johnny announced. "Then, when you need us, we'll just be a few steps away."

"I can show you to the guest quarters," Meimei began, but Johnny shook his head.

"After the last little while, I know this place better than I know my home in LA. Sonya, Jax and I'll be fine. Don't worry about it." He looked to Rayden and nodded again before teleporting out.

Suyuan frowned and started to say something, but thought better of it.

"Let's go," Jax said to Sonya quietly. "We'll come visit later, Rayden."

The deity didn't respond, even when the Goddess of Space and her mortal partner portalled away.

"Come, boys," Suyuan said, getting to her feet and swinging Yueh to the ground. "Let your uncle rest for a while."

Jih patted Rayden's leg, and jumped off the bed, bounding out the door. Yueh paused to pull on his mother's robes, but Meimei just patted his head.

"Go with Grandma," she said. "I'll be along in a little while."

The child nodded, and darted out, following his brother. Suyuan paused at the doorway. "If you need anything--" she began, before letting the offer go unspoken as she gently closed the door behind her.

Rayden sighed and closed his eyes, sliding down so that he was level again.

Meimei and Lin both started to get up when he opened his eyes again. "You don't have to leave," he said, softly. He shifted over to the middle of the bed.

Lin was perched on the side. "Rayden--"

He patted the pillow. "Please."

Lin sighed, and settled down. She rested her head on the pillow and he brushed her thick black hair out of the way, before snuggling in. Meimei lay down on his other side.

He turned slightly, and gave her a touch on the arm, the next-best thing he could do to a hug. She smiled, and snuggled closer. She giggled. "I don't think the bed will take too much more of this."

Rayden smiled, closing his eyes again.

"When was the last time we were all together?" Lin asked, suddenly. "It must have been your wedding, Meimei."

"That was the last time we were all in one place," her sister agreed. "But the last time we all slept together like this...?" She trailed off. "It must have been--" she cut herself off suddenly, and buried her head in the back of Rayden's neck, instantly regretting saying anything at all.

"It was just after Lin's second birthday, just after Hiko had Nova," Rayden supplied quietly, becoming very tense.

"Oh, Rayden, I didn't mean to--" Meimei sniffled, giving him a squeeze. "I'm sorry."

He didn't reply, but put a hand over hers. He was gradually relaxing, and Meimei realised that he had fallen back asleep. But this sleep was natural. She could sense him clearly. She lifted her head to look at Lindara, but realised that her baby sister was falling asleep as well.

Deciding to just go with the flow, Meimei set her head back down and closed her eyes, breathing deeply and trying not to think of the past.

  
Sonya paced.

Jax watched her.

Johnny flopped down onto the bed. "Anybody care to explain things now? Who were those little kids? Why does Rayden look like the walking dead?"

Sonya scowled, her pacing never slowing.

Jax sighed. "Those kids are Jih--he's the loud one, and Yueh-- Meimei's sons and Rayden's nephews."

"Oh. That clears that up." Johnny looked over at the mortal. "Who's the old one? The older goddess?"

Jax stared in confusion. "Which old one? They all look the same age to me."

This caused Sonya to stop and she and Johnny exchanged glances. "She's Suyuan, Goddess of Winds and Rayden's mother," the goddess said. Johnny nodded.

"Okay, and Question Number Three is what happened to Rayden?" Johnny looked to Sonya for the explanation. "He feels mighty weird."

Jax blinked in confusion at the phrasing but neither deity paid him any attention.

"I don't know why his energy is so erratic either. When whatever happened...happened, I got a tremendous shock, and then a wave of pain." Sonya rubbed her temples and both of the others were surprised at this admittance of distress. "Nobody else can figure it out, either. We'll just have to wait until Rayden can tell us himself."

"But what _happened_?" Johnny persisted. "Was he just sitting out on the porch when he suddenly keeled over? What happened, exactly?"

"Nobody knows," Sonya repeated. "He was last seen with Jikan Tai, who's gone god-knows-where, and like I said, only Rayden knows what happened exactly."

"He didn't look like he was in any great hurry to tell us," Johnny observed, lying down again, keeping his head propped up on his elbow. "He looked like he had seen a ghost."

  
Soon it was morning. The storm had not abated in the slightest, and Johnny looked out the window with a deep sigh.

"Missing your sunshine?" Sonya asked, as she stepped into the kitchen.

He nodded glumly. "I'd never been there before, but the minute I stepped from the portal, I felt like I had always lived there. It was the best feeling." He turned to look at her. "You been to Usirapi yet?"

"Where?" Sonya pulled some coffee from a shelf. Rayden's kitchen was well stocked.

"Usirapi, Cosmos' Realm," Johnny elaborated, shifting around so that he was facing her. "You been back yet?"

"Why on Earth," Sonya asked of him, looking at him askew, "would I want to go back there?"

Johnny paused. "Well...because it's yours, of course," he finished simply. "Maresium is mine, and Usirapi is yours. Thanks to the powers."

Sonya stood for a moment in stunned silent, one hand poised above the coffee jar, a spoon hovering mid-air. "I--never thought about it, I guess." She shook her head. "It seems wrong to go back, after all that's happened."

"After all what that's happened?" yawned Meimei as she entered, her hair all bushy and her eyes sleepy.

"Nothing," Sonya said quickly, putting the kettle on to boil. "Would either of you like some coffee?"

"I would," Johnny said immediately.

"Oh, no, thank you," Meimei said, fishing an apple out from the basket and sitting down at the table. She started to peel the apple before realising she needed a knife. Sonya smiled and handed her one before the goddess could ask. "Thank you."

Johnny snickered. "Not a morning person?"

"Not normally, no," Meimei agreed. She began to cut the apple into smaller chunks. "But last night was... restless."

"I know what you mean," Johnny agreed. "Bad dreams?"

She nodded slightly. "Nova. I dreamt of Nova, that I was trying to save her from something, I can't think what." She looked downcast. "She and I weren't that close, really."

"We were," Johnny replied quietly, his voice hushed. "I dreamt of her too. That I was trying to pull her from quicksand, but she kept slipping away."

"I dreamt of Liu," Sonya said suddenly, nearly blurting it. She looked uncomfortable, and Johnny knew how hard for her it was to admit, but she seemed determined to anyway. "I dreamt of when we were walking up the road to the Temple, just after we thought Shao Khan was killed, after the tournament in Agri. And that's when he appeared, in the sky; and he grabbed Liu, and was going to kill him." Her voice started to falter and she had her hands around the tin of coffee to keep from shaking. "I couldn't help him."

Johnny got up and put an arm around her shoulder. She tried to resist for a moment, but gave up, and rested her head on his shoulders.

Meimei, meanwhile, sat at the table, eating her apple in silence. She wasn't especially close to Nova; she barely knew Hiko, mostly knew _of_ her, although they had met several times after she and Rayden got married. But Meimei hadn't known Liu Kang at all. In short, she had no one to grieve for but her brother. She could tell that Rayden was not bearing the stress well, but was determined to carry on regardless and that worried her a great deal.

The silence was broken by Jih, who ran into the kitchen, whooping, followed by his brother. "Mama! Mama!" He scurried over to her and climbed on her lap, while Yueh got on the chair next to her. 

"Morning, boys," she said, giving Jih a cuddle and a slice of apple. Yueh tugged on her sleeve and received a chunk as well.

Jih stared at Johnny. "Hi!"

"Hello," Johnny replied awkwardly as Sonya pulled away and started to busy herself with the coffee, the mood broken.

"Who are you?" Jih continued.

"Jih!" Meimei exclaimed. "Don't talk to your elders in such a fashion!"

"I'm Johnny Cage," the deity replied. "God of Fire."

Jih's eyes went very wide, as did Yueh's. "Oh."

Meimei chuckled, eating the last bit of her apple and reaching for another one. "I told you to be polite to him."

"Sorry," Jih said, awestruck. Sonya was confused by the reverence but Johnny simply took it in stride.

_He would_, she snorted.

"Can I have some porridge, Mama?" Yueh piped up, never taking his eyes from the god.

"Sure, that's a good idea, sweetheart," Meimei replied. "Jih, you're going to have to get down."

"I can make it," Sonya said quickly. "I'm up, anyway."

"That's very thoughtful; thank you." The goddess began to cut up the second apple, sharing it between her sons.

Finding where the cereal was kept was no difficulty, but Sonya had a problem figuring out which container of grain was which type of grain. Some were easy to tell, like wheat and corn, but others were frankly foreign and she was stumped. 

Luckily, she found that someone had written on all the jars; from the writing Sonya guessed that it was Hiko, rather than Rayden. But that made more sense, anyway. She assumed the god could tell at first glance which canister held the quinoa; but Hiko was food-challenged and another matter.

Finally, she located the oatmeal and measured some out into a saucepan. "Do they like anything special in it?" she asked Meimei, while Johnny looked into the pan dubiously.

"They like some dried fruit," Meimei replied, pointing at one of the shelves. Sonya had to stand on tip-toe, but could barely reach it. Johnny stretched and reached it with ease. He gave it to her without any trace of a smirk so she spared him a scowl.

Soon the porridge was bubbling merrily and she found bowls and spoons.

"They have wooden ones of their own," Meimei said, shaking her head. She pointed to a set on the second shelf. "They tend to be... tough with their utensils."

"What does utensil mean?" Yueh asked.

"Bowls and plates and forks and things," his mother replied, gathering her apple peel together. "Be a dear and put that in the compost for mother."

"Compost? Rayden has a garden?" Johnny replied, smiling despite himself.

"No, but it goes in the Temple compost," the deity replied.

"Oh."

"Rayden was never very interested in plants," Meimei continued. She thought to herself. "I wonder why. Oh well."

"I understand Hiko had a flower garden," Johnny replied, with a grin.

"I don't know about that." Meimei shrugged. Sonya was setting the table so the goddess lifted Jih off her lap and set him down on another chair. He protested but then caught sight of Johnny and hushed immediately. Johnny caught Sonya's eye and smiled, but she didn't return it.

"I guess Mother is still asleep," Meimei said suddenly. "She's probably tired out."

"She has been taking care of the boys," Johnny remarked, pulling up a chair. "At least, I assume she has."

The goddess nodded. "But she normally does that." Jih was already done his breakfast and starting to fuss. She pointed to a cloth lying on the counter and Sonya threw it to her. 

Sonya then leaned against the counter, her arms crossed and a questioning look on her face. "She does? Does she live with you and your husband?"

Meimei laughed. "Oh, no. We live with her, and _her_ husband in Officina. That's Naturalis' Realm. Tai Hou--my husband--doesn't have a Realm, you see." She pulled Jih to her and wiped his face. The minute she let him go he flew off, leaving his brother to finish breakfast alone at the table. "Lately, I've been wondering if I shouldn't move to my own Realm. For the boys, I mean. And Mother, too. I'm sure she'd love the calm. Yueh, darling, finish your porridge."

"You can't just get a Realm," Johnny interrupted. "Can you?"

"I already have one," Meimei responded. "Outworld."

The silence when she announced this was profound, but she didn't seem to notice, and continued on. "As Shao Khan's only full-blood relative--with the exception of Rayden, naturally--it is mine by right."

"And you turned it down?" Sonya exclaimed.

"Not really. I didn't want it at the time--I'd just had the twins and I couldn't face it, so full of negative energy like it was. I nearly turned it down, but then one of its previous inhabitants came forward and asked to take care of it, as a Regent of sorts." Meimei stopped to grab Yueh by the collar as he was making a run from the table. She pulled him over, inspected his face, wiped a smudge, and then let him go. She looked up to Sonya, and was startled to see that the Goddess had gone pale. She frowned, and looked to Johnny, but he didn't have an explanation either. Sonya seemed to find her voice.

"Kitana," she said, slowly. "Kitana is the Regent."

Meimei nodded, still confused as to why this would have any significance. Johnny picked up on his friend's inference immediately, and realised why she looked so ill. "Liu. She hasn't been told about Liu."

  
Rayden stood out on the grass. Overhead, the clouds rumbled, and the rain fell steadily. He could hear it hitting the outside of his straw hat. He watched the water streaming off the rim.

"Rayden?"

It was Lindara, calling from the doorframe. She obviously didn't want to step outside and risk getting wet. 

He could have turned to reply to her. He could have simply called over his shoulder. He did neither.

"Rayden!" she exclaimed, trying to get his attention. Finally she decided that rain or no rain, she was going to talk to him.

She bounded out, the skirt of her dress lifted off the ground so it wouldn't get soaked by the wet grass. She let one side of her hem drop so that she could pull on his shoulder.

"Rayden! You need to get out of this rain," she commanded, shivering. "It's cold and wet and raining so I suppose it would be wet but you'll catch a chill and then Mother will be furious," Lin continued in a single breath. "Rayden, are you listening to me?"

He turned then, and she was relieved by it; he had been so out of sorts since the previous evening. But he didn't reply to her and she realised after a moment that he was staring at something over her shoulder.

She turned, but the doorway was empty. She looked back. "Rayden?"

He looked down at her suddenly as though only now becoming aware of her presence. "Lin. I thought--" He trailed off, staring at the empty door.

"Rayden," she repeated again, tugging more forcefully, letting her skirt drop to the ground entirely, "Come inside." He stared at her in confusion, as though he couldn't see any reason why he _shouldn't_ be outside. "Rayden," she repeated, letting her worry creep into her voice. "Come inside, right now." She started to pull on his arm, and he followed her meekly.

  
Lindara came into the kitchen, soaking wet, and found Meimei and Sonya and Johnny talking at the table. Sonya looked far paler than she could remember the mortal--goddess, Lin corrected quickly--looking in the past.

"Lindara," Johnny acknowledged. "You're soaking."

"Where were you?" asked Meimei, getting to her feet.

"Rescuing Rayden. He was just standing outside, in the rain," Lin replied, wringing her long sleeves. "I had to pull him in."

Meimei looked confused. "What? He was sleeping."

"He must have left after you got up. I woke up to find both of you were gone. I had a funny feeling, checked outside and there he was." Lindara took her sister's hands. "I'm really worried for him. He's really out of sorts."

Meimei gave her a quick hug. "I know, Lin. But we'll work through it. Mother's here; you're here--"

"You're here," Lindara replied, confused. "Unless--you're planning on leaving?"

"Something's come up," Meimei agreed, exchanging a look with Johnny and Sonya. "We've got to go to Outworld."

"Outworld!" Lindara exclaimed, a hand flying to her breast. "Why would you want to go _there_?!"

"Unfinished business," Meimei repeated firmly. "Don't worry, we won't be gone longer than a day or two."

"Tell me why," Lindara insisted. "Please. I won't tell Mother if you want; but just tell me, please."

Meimei sighed.

"We have to go tell Kitana about Liu," Johnny supplied quickly. "She doesn't know he's dead."

"Does it make a difference?" Lindara asked in confusion. 

"Lin!" Meimei blurted. "They were very close!"

"Oh." Lindara at least had the sense to be ashamed. "Sorry."

"It's okay," Sonya snapped, perfunctory. "Meimei, can we go soon? I'm not looking forward to this."

"Neither am I," Johnny agreed. "I'd like to get this over with."

Meimei sighed and fussed with her hair, a sure sign to Lindara that she was mulling something over in her head. "What about Rayden?"

"You said yourself that his mother's here, that Lin is here," Sonya reminded her. "If anything comes up, we can come back in a second."

"That's true." Meimei seemed torn. "Then there are the boys--"

"Again," Johnny interrupted, "they'll be in good hands. We shouldn't be gone that long; if we're not back by the evening I'd be really surprised. Outworld is not a place that inspires long visits."

Meimei sighed, then nodded. "I must get changed, first. I am Outworld's Lady; I cannot go in my dressing gown." She started towards the door, then stopped and took Lindara aside. "Lin, I want you to tell Mother, but not Rayden. He's been through enough for the moment, we can tell him later. And for goodness sake don't tell the boys; they're liable to blurt out anything. Just tell them that I've gone home to check on Naturalis, or something like that. Okay?"

"Okay," Lindara agreed readily.

"I'll go wake up Jax," Sonya said, brushing by them. "I let him sleep in."

Johnny started to say something; but hesitated. He sat back at the table, coffee mug in hand. "I'll just wait here," he finished quietly.

Meimei nodded, and left the room.

Lin looked to the new God of Fire. She, very awkwardly, sat down at the table.

"You don't have to be so nervous, I don't bite," Johnny said to her, smiling.

She was shocked by the phrase until she realised it was some sort of mortal joke. "I didn't think that you were going to bite me," she said primly.

"Then why do you look like you'd rather be on the other side of the Temple?" Johnny asked her suddenly. "Look, I'm not one to pull punches. I know you weren't this uncomfortable around me at Agri's Tournament. Is it because I'm now a god? I'm just curious. I want to know."

Lindara sat with her hands in her lap. She was staring at the sodden hem of her green dress. "I don't mean to be rude," she said quietly. "I--" She shook her head, bringing it up to look him in the eye. "I'm sorry. I won't be like that, any more."

"I don't care if you are," Johnny admitted with a shrug. He took a sip of coffee. "Like I said, I was just curious."

She regarded him closely. "You were there. You were there when Nova was killed."

He went very pale. "Yeah," he managed in a choked voice. "Yeah, I was."

She leaned in. "Tell me. Tell me what happened."

Johnny got up suddenly, setting his mug down. "I wonder what's keeping Sonya and Jax? I'd better go check."

He left the room, almost running.

Lin watched him leave, then shook her head and got to her feet. She could hear the rain on the roof overhead, and it was beginning to annoy her. She closed her eyes and stretched out, using her powers to try and drive away the storm; she'd had enough.

It was resistant to her attempts. Sighing heavily, she gave up. She would get Rayden to deal with it when he felt better.


	2. Chapter 2

Meimei came flying out her room, putting the finishing touches in her hair, when she bumped into her mother. 

"Where are you going?" Suyuan exclaimed. "Why are you getting all dressed up?" 

"An emergency's come up, Mother, in Outworld," Meimei mumbled, hairpins in her mouth. "I was just on my way to tell you." 

At the mention of her second son's Realm, Suyuan's lips thinned. "Why are you going there?" 

"I need to take Johnny and Sonya to see someone there," Meimei replied, taking the pins from her mouth, so she could speak properly. "And I've got some loose ends to tie up. I won't be long." 

"You have an emergency _here_ to deal with," her mother reminded her. 

"Rayden's got you and Lin, and we're only a thought away," Meimei countered. "We'll only be gone a few hours, at most. It really shouldn't be put off." 

"Hmmm," Suyuan grumbled. She couldn't forbid her daughter to leave, but that didn't mean she had to be happy about it. "A few hours?" 

"At most," Meimei agreed. "Can you watch the boys? Lin's hopeless with them." 

"Of course." Suyuan sighed. "Don't be long. I'm worried about Rayden." 

"We all are," Meimei told her. "And I won't be any longer than I absolutely have to be. I'll come rushing back." 

"Good. I don't think I can handle Jih and Yueh without back-up for too long," Suyuan said with a hint of a smile. Meimei smiled back; the comment was as close as her mother would get to approving of Meimei's sudden departure. 

  
Sonya and Jax appeared back in the kitchen a few minutes after they left. Jax looked completely awake and refreshed. Johnny wondered how he had done it. 

Jax caught the ex-mortal looking at him. "You're wondering how I look so awake." 

"Yeah," Johnny admitted simply. "It's not something I could ever pull off." 

"You haven't been in the Army since you were eighteen," Jax said with a hint of a smile. 

Just then Meimei bustled in, still trying to get her hair right. "I've talked to Suyuan, and Lin. Everything is set." She looked at Sonya. "This won't be too long, will it?" 

"Not if I can help it," Sonya replied honestly. "I'm not comfortable with doing this at all." 

"I know what you mean," Johnny muttered. They all looked at each other. "Well, then, let's get going," the actor said in frustration. But before he could teleport out, Meimei waved her hands for him to stop. 

"Wait. There's something we need to do, first." She took a deep breath. "What are the words? I can't...oh, wait. Okay." She took another deep breath. "I hereby, as Protector, invite you to the Realm of Outworld." 

Jax looked at Sonya, then Meimei, then Johnny, then back to Sonya. All three of the deities looked different, somehow. Meimei simply looked expectant, but Sonya and Johnny had a new-found... glow. The mortal shook his head. He wasn't used to dealing with stuff like this. Sonya held out her hand to him, but Meimei shook her head, and with a look of extreme concentration, she opened a crackling gray portal in the center of the kitchen. 

Even Sonya seemed impressed. "Hurry up," Meimei said with her voice strained. "I can't hold it open forever." 

Sonya and Johnny both nodded, and headed through. Jax took one last look around the kitchen, reminded himself to get breakfast in Outworld, and stepped into the portal. 

  
Jax stood on the open plain of Outworld. "On second thought, I think I will skip breakfast." 

Overhead, the sky was a rolling sea of dark blue-purple clouds that boiled and frothed against each other. Ruins of a once-prosperous city had toppled and the stones lay where they fell. 

"Okay, I knew there was a flaw in this plan," Johnny said dryly. "And I think it was coming back here." 

Even Meimei was off-set by the scene. "It's horrible," she said, shuddering. "How could anyone live here?" 

"Very carefully," remarked a dry voice behind them. They all whirled to find someone very familiar watching them in turn. 

"Kitana!" Sonya and Johnny both exclaimed. 

She bowed to them. "Johnny. Sonya. It is a pleasure to see you again. Lady Meimei. Have you come on an official visit?" 

Meimei paled. "Uh...no." 

"As you wish." Kitana bowed deeper to Meimei than she had to the others, and then turned to Jax. She was obviously waiting to be introduced. 

"Kitana, this is my partner, Jax--" Sonya began, but Kitana waved her silent. 

"We have already met," she said with a slight smile, although the smile faltered and she seemed, suddenly, to question her own memory. "At least--I believe we have." 

"I know _I_ haven't had the pleasure," Jax piped up. He took her hand and suavely kissed it. Sonya frowned, which Johnny noticed, causing him to frown as well. 

Meimei was the only one not frowning. "Regent, could we perhaps go inside?" 

"Of course, Lady." Kitana bowed deeply and turned, gesturing for the others to follow her. "I am curious to know why you have paid a visit to Outworld." 

Sonya and Johnny exchanged looks. "That's best left for when we're all sitting down." 

Kitana tried to scrutinise their faces, but diverted her eyes the moment either made eye contact. That irritated Johnny; it seemed a lot of people were doing that to him lately. 

Eventually, Kitana seemed to give up, even though she must have been extremely curious to know what news her visitors brought. 

  
They walked for about five minutes before they reached a cliff side. Looking down, all the newcomers gasped in unison. 

Before them lay a valley, as lush and green as anything on Earth. A city was built in the center, made of white stone, towers rising above the tree-lined streets while mortals busied themselves on errands and constitutionals. While the sky overhead was the same bruised atrocity, the city below seemed calm and peaceful and serene. 

"That is Xiatian, Outworld's new capital," Kitana said proudly, a hand out, gesturing proudly at the vista. "We have worked hard to restore the city's natural beauty. Come, I will show you to your Temple, Lady." 

She led them along a path that wandered parallel to the cliff's edge. A staircase suddenly became apparent, jutting out from the rock, and she walked down it without any hesitation what- so-ever. Meimei followed second, and then Sonya, Jax and Johnny brought up the rear. 

Meimei's Temple was actually hewn into the side of the cliff face, sculpted from the raw rock. It was simple, with only a main throne room and a small room to the side for private counsels, but it was beautiful and lovingly made. The walls were so polished that they could all see their reflections in the veined marble. 

"This mortal, appointed Regent of your Realm, dedicates this Temple to you, Oh Lady Meimei," Kitana said very formally, once they entered. She got to one knee. Meimei touched her shoulder. 

"I accept your dedication," the goddess replied. She looked around. "It really is a gorgeous Temple. It's too small for the boys, though." 

"You speak of your two sons?" Kitana asked, without looking up. "The Temple can be enlarged as your Ladyship wishes." 

"No, no. This is fine. I don't think I want to move the boys just yet." Meimei did not elaborate, but the reason was as clear as glass to the others: she did not want to raise her children in Outworld, the way Outworld was now. 

"As your Ladyship wishes." Kitana stood, the ceremony apparently complete. 

Johnny whistled. "When I went to Maresium, they dedicated a Temple to me, too." 

"I'm sure that did your ego some good," Sonya snorted. 

Johnny ignored the comment. "--But the ceremony wasn't as fancy. Did we do it wrong, or...?" 

"We have specialised customs," Kitana explained to him. "Maresians would no doubt have different customs." 

"Whew, that's a load off my mind," Johnny said. "The way we did it, I was sure the Creator was going to smite me." 

Meimei was staring at him, a mixture of shock and disgust on her face. "I know how mortals disregard the names of their Creator, but deities do not," she said sharply. "You do not know, and so I will let this slip." She turned and started towards one of the windows, to look out on the valley. 

Johnny, startled and embarrassed, glanced at Sonya, but the goddess wasn't paying him any attention. He caught Jax's eye, but the mortal only shrugged. 

"Kitana?" Sonya asked, suddenly, "There's something we need to talk about. Is there somewhere we can go, to sit down?" 

Kitana gestured to a door in the far wall. "There is her Lady's private chamber. Will that do?" 

"I suppose so..." Sonya trailed off. She looked to her friends. "Are you two coming?" 

"Of course," Johnny replied, solemnly. "This is as much my responsibility as it is yours." 

"I think I'll stay out here," Jax blurted, when the deity was through. "I don't think I have anything to contribute to that conversation. I don't think it's my place." 

Sonya nodded, regarding him for a moment, and then she headed off. Johnny and Kitana were quick on her heels, with Meimei following sedately after, clearly not relishing the meeting either. 

  
Jax looked out the window at the city below. It seemed like an optimistic view of any Earth city. There were plenty of trees, no garbage that he could see, no cars. It was clean and pleasant and non-polluted. Which, considering the rest of the Realm, was no small feat, he knew. 

He looked to the door. He wondered if he should have gone with them. But he would have only been painfully out of place. Yes, he knew Liu Kang; but it was a fleeting, passing acquaintance. He didn't feel qualified to announce the death to Kitana, who had been very close to Liu, as far as Jax could tell. 

He definitely didn't like staying, waiting by the window. He preferred to be doing something, anything, and so he rooted around in his pockets to see if he could find the printout of--ah, there it was. The printout of the knife, the knife that used to belong to Shao Khan. This was Shao Khan's former world; perhaps his former tenants could tell Jax something about it. 

He started towards the door of the chamber when he heard the muted sounds of someone shouting; he decided that perhaps it would be better if he didn't disturb them. Sonya would know where to find him. 

  
The room was sparsely furnished, no doubt because the mortals were not sure as to Lady Meimei's tastes. There were, however, several chairs, and they each took one, leaving the obvious throne to Meimei herself. 

She took it, uncomfortable with what it represented. 

"What is this news that you bring?" Kitana asked, without preamble. "But before you tell me, there is one thing I would like to know." 

"Ask," Johnny said quietly. 

"Where is Liu Kang? Is he busy with Temple work? Why did he not come, to visit?" The Regent looked from one saddened face to another. "What? What has happened?" 

"Liu..." Sonya trailed off, trying to find her voice. "Liu is--" 

"Lightning," Johnny suddenly blurted. "Did you hear about Lightning?" 

"Rumours, pieces of information here and there," Kitana replied, bewildered. "Our holy people detected a vast shift in energy around that time, but that's all we know." 

"To make a very, _very,_ long story short," Johnny began, drawing a sharp breath, "Lightning attacked the Omniverse, trying to siphon its energy off to feed herself." 

Kitana stared at him, uncomprehending. "I--" 

Johnny held up a hand. "We tried to fight her. And for the most part, we succeeded. We killed her, we restored the Omniverse to what it was." He took a deep breath, and looked to Sonya. She nodded, sadly. "But we paid a terrible price for it. For our victory." 

Kitana began to understand and she paled visibly. "Liu." 

"Liu, Nova and Hiko all died that day," Johnny finished sadly. "It was due to Liu that we were able to defeat Lightning at all. We could have never pulled it off without him." 

Kitana had the back of her hand to her mouth, to keep from crying out. "Liu Kang is dead." 

Johnny and Sonya both nodded. 

For a moment, the Regent just sat, her eyes closed. Then she got to her feet, and walked to the window. She stared out, her arms crossed behind her back. "You said that it was because of Liu that you were able to defeat Lightning." 

"Yes," Johnny said, with a nod. 

She turned on him, sudden anger written across her face. "Was it the best option?" 

"What are you saying?" Sonya leapt to her feet. "It was the only option! We had one chance to defeat Lightning, and we took it!" 

"Who are you defending what you did to? Me, or you?" Kitana asked quietly, her voice dangerously low. Sonya went beet red, and the air around her began to shimmer. 

"How dare you..." she said through clenched teeth. "We did what we had to do, nothing more." 

"Liu sacrificed himself," Kitana began, but stopped when she saw the look that played across Johnny's face. "Ah. I see. Liu _did not_ sacrifice himself. You made that choice for him." 

Now it was Johnny's turn to jump to his feet. "We did what had to be done! Liu would have done anything to defeat Lightning, and he could hardly make the decision himself--" 

"Why not?" Kitana demanded. "A person has the right to choose!" 

"He was possessed by Lightning!" Johnny roared, provoked beyond measure. "He wasn't Liu any more! He was just a walking bunch of cells! It was the only weakness she had, the only chance we had and _we took it_!" The god of fire stopped, breathing heavily, his eyes misted. "We had to. It was either Lightning, or us." 

Sonya sat back down, feeling as thought a great weight was pressing down upon her. She rested her hands on her legs, but her legs were shaking. Her arms were shaking. _She_ was shaking. If she closed her eyes she could see Lightning on the field, back on Earth, cackling with laughter as she blasted them with waves of energy. Sonya could feel the tingle in her arms and legs, the long memory of her senses. 

Kitana said nothing, but stared at the deities before her. "Liu is dead. Because of you." 

"Because of _Lightning_," Johnny protested weakly. The argument and all its ramifications and relived memories was taking its toll on him. "Because of her." 

Kitana glared at him, no longer bound by convention to avert her eyes from those of a god. For she no longer considered him superior. "Why was I not told when it happened? Lightning's attack occurred months ago." 

"One month," Meimei suddenly interrupted. She had kept silent, but could hold her tongue no longer. "It has been one month, and in their defense, they have had a lot on their minds." 

Kitana snorted. "You could have sent word--" 

"We didn't know where you were!" Sonya exclaimed furiously. "The last time we saw you was about a month after the battle of Shao Khan! You just disappeared, without so much as a forwarding address!" 

"I had to serve my people!" Kitana retorted defensively. "I had to come, rebuild my world!" 

"You could have told _us_ that. Did you bother to tell Liu?" Sonya's voice lowed to a growl. The air around her shimmer and rippled. "You didn't, did you." 

"I did," Kitana ascertained. "I invited him to join me. To come with me to Outworld, but he refused. He said he had work to do for _his_ people. That was the last I have heard of him!" 

"And it was the last we heard of you," Sonya maintained. 

"Do you believe that cancels it out? That we are even?" Kitana sneered. 

"No." Sonya regarded the Regent with coldness in her eyes. "Nothing can make up for what happened. But I want you to see that neither of us can throw the first stone." 

"I do not understand the reference," Kitana began, "but I believe I know what you are saying." She took a deep breath, a calming breath, and put a hand against the glass, to steady herself. "I am sorry, for the outburst." 

"At least your outbursts don't require interior decorators," Johnny remarked, trying to lighten the mood. They ignored him. 

Kitana pulled herself away from the view. "I must return to my work." She looked to Meimei. "Is there anything else you require of me, Lady?" 

Meimei shook her head, and the mortal bowed again, deeply, before leaving the room. 

"That went well," Johnny remarked. 

"Can the quips, Cage," Sonya snapped, her head in her hands. She lifted it up and her eyes were full of tears. "God, this was a bad decision." 

"She was right, she deserved to be told," Johnny said softly. 

Sonya was shaking her head. "I know. But I don't think we should have been the ones to do it." 

"It's better for her to hear it from us--" 

"Not better for me! Or for you!" Sonya seemed to explode. "Where does she get off, blaming us like that! She wasn't there, she doesn't know--" She trailed off, determined to pull herself together. Her shoulders were shaking, but she seemed to be succeeding. "I think we should be going home." 

"I agree," Meimei said quietly, getting to her feet. "Let's get Jax and go." 

They all teleported into the main hall. Kitana was gone already, understandably, but Jax was also gone. Johnny looked out the window, but neither mortal was in sight. 

"I don't understand," Sonya began. "Where could he have gone?" 

"Don't you know?" exclaimed Meimei, startled. "Can't you just sense him?" 

Sonya seemed sheepish. "I forgot about that." She stretched out with her thoughts, searching for those of her partner. _Jax, where are you_? It took only a fraction of a second. "Got him. He's in the city, talking to a mortal." 

"Then let's go get him and get out of here." Johnny glanced out at the rolling indigo sky and shuddered. 

Sonya nodded. "I can take you right to him..." 

A portal opened, and she jumped through. Meimei sighed and followed, as did Johnny. 

  
Sonya found herself on the main street, Meimei right behind her. "Hey, where's Johnny?" 

The goddess looked behind her, but the portal had already closed. "I suppose he must have decided to remain behind." 

"Nice of him to tell us," Sonya snapped. "Oh well. Let's get Jax and get going." 

  
"No, see, I'm not one of the rebels," Jax protested with a sigh as the woman scuttled away from him. "I just want to know about--" 

"Hey!" exclaimed a man, coming out from one of the shops. "What are you doing?" 

"I'm merely trying to get some information," Jax explained, carefully. "I'm not one of the rebels." 

The man looked at him dubiously. "What information are you seeking?" 

Jax held up the printout. The man paled. "You do not know what you are seeking?" 

"No, I don't," Jax replied. "That's why I'm asking people about it." 

"That is the Knife of Rodosi," the man quaked, clearly growing more terrified. "That is the knife of Shao Khan!" 

His frightened shouts were drawing a crowd. Obviously, the man had memories of Shao Khan's reign that were not especially pleasant. 

Jax began to back up, when the first woman he had ask began to howl. "He's one of the rebels! Searching to restore Khan!" Within moments the crowd had grown in size and anger. 

"Uh oh," the Earth native murmured. "This is not good." He did not want to get into a fight with these people. He tried backing up again to find he had run into someone. He whirled around, to see Kitana scowling at him. 

"Do you bring more disruption into my life?" she asked of him. Before he could answer, she stepped past him and turned to address the crowd. "Friends, he is a not a rebel. I vouch for him." 

"He is looking for the Knife of Rodosi," the man yelled. "He is looking for Shao Khan." 

"That's not true," Jax protested. "I'm just looking for information." 

Kitana shot him a look over her shoulder that he took to mean _I'll deal with_ you _later_. "Friends, this is one of the warriors that helped to bring Shao Khan down. He is loyal to the cause of peace. He is no rebel." 

"Do you trust him, Princess?" asked another of the crowd, while the rest exchanged glances and fervent murmurs. 

"I do." Kitana held her head up high, daring any to question her trust. They did not; they knew Kitana and felt she knew best. Slowly, the crowd began to disperse. It was only when they were gone that Kitana turned to face Jax. 

"What are you doing?" she snapped, starting down the street. He followed her, partly for a chance to explain himself and partly to show he was thankful for what she did. 

"I told them I was looking for information on this knife. It's turned up on Earth and I thought I might find something out from the natives." Jax handed her the picture. She stopped dead in her tracks. 

"This is Rodosi," she said to him, her voice low. "It was Shao Khan's, made by Outworld forgers and given power by Shang Tsung himself. For every person that Khan killed with this knife, its powers grew." She looked at him. "That is why my people were so frightened of it. They know of it. Some have even seen it first hand." 

"Like I said, it's turned up on Earth--" Jax began, but she cut him off. 

"That is impossible. It was destroyed during the Last Battle." Kitana shook her head. "It is gone." 

"Then how did I get a picture of it?" Jax pointed at the words typed out along the bottom. "Sonya and I are part of an elite team that investigates... other-worldly happenings around the planet. We were given top access because of our experiences with other Realms, which officially don't exist." He smiled, but Kitana did not find his sentence amusing. He cleared his throat and continued. "This knife is one of several artifacts believed to be recovered from Outworld. When the two Realms merged, several things got traded--" 

"I know this," Kitana interrupted. 

"Right. Sorry. I'm used to explaining this to our civilian management. Now, as I was saying, this knife has suddenly become very popular among the black magic crowd. I just thought I'd look into it while I was here." Jax took the paper and folded it up, fitting it back in his pocket. "But I guess I touched a nerve, so I'll let it pass. Old-fashioned Earth news will have to do for us." 

Kitana shook her head slowly. "No. No, you will have all the information you need. If someone is trying to continue the works of Shao Khan, they must be stopped. I will help you with whatever you need." 

"Just the hard facts," Jax replied. "Just what we need to know." 

"Very well. Come with me, to the new palace; we have records and archives that may be useful." Kitana started to walk again, briskly, although Jax had no problems keeping up with her, something she was obviously not used to. 

They had gone only a few minutes down the block when Jax heard a familiar crackle of a portal opening up. "It must be Sonya," he said, turning. 

The figure that stepped through gazed at both of them with a sombre look. 

"Jikan Tai," Jax said, surprised. "I thought you were Sonya." 

The Guardian did not reply, nor did he respond when Kitana bowed deeply to him. "Jax. Princess Kitana. I need your help." 

"Our help?" the mortal blurted. "What for?" 

"I cannot tell you here," Jikan Tai said, looking around him as though he expected someone to be watching, overhearing. "You must come quickly." 

Overhead, a suspicious rumble echoed through the sky. Kitana looked up, startled. "It is the wrong time of year for thunder," she said, confused. Then she jumped. 

Jax knew why; a strange tingle was running up and down his arms. It was a very familiar feeling. "Lightning. This feels like Lightning." 

Jikan Tai shuddered and clutched his staff tightly. "You must help me," he said again, his voice on the verge of breaking. 

Jax and Kitana exchanged a brief glance, then nodded. 

  
Meimei felt very skittery. She remembered this feeling, vaguely, but couldn't place it. Sonya could, however. She was looking around her in blind terror. 

"Lightning," she whispered. "She's come back, some how." 

  
Lindara sighed, and stepped back indoors. Rayden was still outside, looking up down over the valley, as he had been all day. She couldn't get him to come out of the rain, or even to say more than two sentences to her. She rested her head on the door jamb, unsure of what to do, of how to help him. 

There was a peal of thunder overhead, and she looked up, startled. Immediately she felt a rash of pins and needles all over her arms. "Rayden?" she called out, worried. She looked to him, and he was standing, staring at her with his mouth wide open. 

"Lightning," was all he said, his voice tight. 

  
Jax and Kitana stepped through the portal without hesitation. Jax knew that Lightning must be stopped, at any cost, and so he was willing to serve in any way possible. Kitana did not know as much about the goddess, but she trusted the Guardian, and in an odd way, Jax. She had not met him before, but a strange feeling of deja vu set in. 

They stepped out of the portal into a huge forest, filled with towering trees, under each of which lay small pools of crystal clear water. 

Jikan Tai rested on his staff. He seemed very weary, as though he was carrying a great weight on his shoulders. The two other mortals looked to him questioningly. He sighed, and flipped his bangs out of his eyes. "I have made a very serious mistake," he said without preamble. "A terrible mistake, and I am at my rope's end." 

"You can't fix it?" Jax asked him. Kitana looked confused. "Which mistake does the Guardian speak of?" she asked him. "This mortal does not understand." 

Jikan Tai glanced over at Jax, making eye contact for a slight moment, but it was enough. The mortal nodded. 

"He's gone back in time," Jax began, carefully, watching the Guardian for any hint, any hope, that he was wrong. Unfortunately, the Guardian made no move to correct him. "To fix things, but you didn't, did you." 

Jikan Tai shook his head, his eyes closed in silent agony. His knees suddenly gave way, but he merely slid down his staff, until he knelt on the grass. "I tried so hard to fix everything," he sobbed, "but it's all coming apart and I can't see what to do." 

Jax was unsure how to deal with this sudden overflowing of emotion, but Kitana knelt by the Guardian, an arm on his shoulder. 

"Guardian, please tell me what has happened, so that I might help fix it," she said softly. 

Jikan Tai wiped his eyes on the sleeve of his shirt. "I went back to when Hiko initiated the transfer with Nova. That was the turning point in the entire sequence of events; that made everything that happened, inevitable." 

The Princess still did not follow, but Jax did. "So you went back, and stopped Hiko from doing the transfer." 

"No, not exactly. I simply helped with the transfer, so that Hiko did not die from exhaustion. I think. My head is so clouded, my memories are jumbled--" He shook his head. "I can't remember what went wrong, what happened, exactly. It's like recalling a dream from days or weeks ago..." He froze up, nearly in tears with the frustration. Kitana stroked his hair comfortingly and he began, slowly, to calm down. 

Jikan Tai took a deep breath. "After that, everything... just went wrong. Rayden was killed by Lightning; the plan to kill Liu went through but somehow Lightning switched to Nova before she died. Hiko couldn't kill Nova; and so on, and so forth and endlessly the thread of time unravelled. The sudden change in realities was too great for it to happen simultaneously; and so the Omniverse is slowly shifting to a reality where Lightning _won_." 

His last word seemed to hang in the misty air. He shook his head miserably. "I do not know what to do! As soon as the change began to take place, I felt my powers beginning to weaken. Lightning killed me in that frame of reference, you see. I had to get out. I needed help. I didn't know who to turn to." 

"And you came to us?" Kitana murmured. "Why?" 

"I can trust you to see the big picture," he said to her. "I know you to be able to see how things fit together. And Jax is the only one who understands my time powers other than myself." 

Jax nodded. "I get it, now. But why aren't your powers weakening here?" 

"This place, this Wood, is outside the Omniverses." Jikan Tai sniffed, and then pointed to the pools. "Those are the gateways to the different realities. I have visited many hundred since I first discovered this place, when I was young." 

Both of the other mortals stared in bewilderment at the pools, which seemed nothing more than clear, water filled indentations in the grassy floor of the forest. 

"What's wrong with that one?" Jax asked, suddenly, pointing at one which they were only a few feet from. The water was beginning to boil. It was only a few bubbles that popped at the surface; but already the amount was increasing. 

"That is our Omniverse," Jikan Tai said sombrely. "That is why I brought you here. We have one chance, and one chance alone, to defeat Lightning and restore our version of reality." 

"I don't understand," Jax blurted, staring in horror at the bubbling pool, as realisation dawned on him. "All we have to do is fix the mistake you made." 

"But we must do it without Lightning noticing. She controls Time within that Omniverse as she controls the Omniverse itself. She will notice immediately, and attack, to hold on to her power. And my powers weaken the moment I return." Jikan Tai tried to get to his feet. Kitana helped him up. "That is why I need your help. I need you to complete the change while I distract her." 

"You're going to sacrifice yourself?" Kitana asked. 

He nodded. "It is the only way." 

She shook her head, violently. "It is not. There must be another way. One that you have not thought of." 

Jikan Tai looked downcast, almost chastised by her tone and the remark. "I... I cannot think clearly," he admitted. "With everything that has happened--" 

"That's what we're here for," Jax said firmly. "I've got an idea. We--Kitana and I--will hold off Lightning. Then you can make the change. We're just two mortals among many--" 

"No, that is not right either." Jikan Tai closed his eyes. He was still kneeling, and he began to mumble in a strange language, one which neither Kitana nor Jax knew or even recognised. But the way that the Guardian was speaking, his tone and inflection, brought back memories for the mortals. 

"He is praying," Kitana breathed softly. She ducked her own head. "Creator, help us to find an answer. Help us to see the solution." 

  
Jax suddenly felt very tired, himself. To have to defeat Lightning again, and with only Kitana for help, was a scary prospect. He wondered how they could possibly pull it off when the Guardian started his prayers. The sudden sing-song wafted through the heavy, water-laden air, the chanting making Jax feel even sleepier. He closed his eyes for a second when he suddenly heard his alarm clock go off in the back of his mind. 

It jolted him awake. Kitana was staring at him. So was Jikan Tai. 

"What was that?" Kitana asked. "What startled you?" 

Jax suddenly felt sheepish. "I thought I heard my alarm clock go off. How dumb is that?" 

Jikan Tai stared at him, wide-eyed. "Of course..." 

"Of course?" both mortals cried, waiting expectantly. 

The Guardian suddenly fished around the inside of his jacket. He pulled out an elaborate pocket watch, made of a silvery metal similar to the staff he carried. The hands on the watch were set to twelve o'clock. 

"This watch will allow you to remain outside of the Timestream. I can distract Lightning, and then you can initiate the change; the watch will teleport you both out, and I can do the same." He shook his head sadly. "I was a fool not to think of it before. Lord Rayden was right." 

He handed the watch to Kitana. "I believe you know how to use it, or you will when the time comes." He smiled for a split-second. It was not a wide grin, but a slight smile that was as close as Jikan Tai ever got to beaming. "Do you know what you must do?" 

"Stop you from helping Hiko," Jax replied instantly. "But that means--" 

"Yes," the Guardian nodded sadly, distraught. "We must let her die. Again. I thought perhaps there was a way around it, but it seems to be necessary in this version." He looked suddenly to Kitana. "Are you ready?" 

"I am, Guardian," she replied with a slight bow. He took the watch from her and set it to three-thirty. 

"When the hands start to spin, you and Jax must stay in contact with each other, or you may not pull him through with you." He looked to the other mortal, but before he could say anything, Jax held up a hand. 

"I understand. Let's get going." 

  
The sky overhead was thick with clouds, but it wasn't raining yet. Jax somehow assumed it would be. The wind was blowing furiously, though. 

"Where are we?" shouted Kitana, over the roar of the wind. They were huddled against the remains of a wall, a brick wall that had been blasted by something very powerful, very recently. 

Jax looked around him. "I think this the old infirmary--that's right, Nova and Lightning had their battle here. That means--" He poked his head around the corner of the wall. Sure enough, Rayden and Hiko were several meters from them, cradling Nova between them, trying to bring her back from the brink. Jikan Tai stood over them, watching them sadly. 

"What is he doing?" Jax muttered. Kitana poked her head around. She had not been present for any of the battle, so this was all new to her. Jax had been in the Hall while this was happening, but he'd been able to fit two and two together. 

Jikan Tai was talking to Rayden, although his words were swept away in the wind. "Why doesn't he just attack?" Jax called to Kitana. 

She shook her, drawn by something. "Look!" 

There was a sudden flash, although the deities themselves did not seem to notice, concerned as they were with Nova. But the mortals saw it quite clearly; Jikan Tai had changed. This was the change. 

Now they could see him glowing, adding power to Hiko's transfer. A peal of thunder so loud that it seemed it would crack the earth in two echoed around them. Hiko cried out and fainted; Nova began to stir. 

"That's the transfer!" Jax yelled, furiously. "We haven't stopped anything!" 

"Then we must stop it now," Kitana said suddenly, breaking into a run. 

  
The deities all looked up as she approached. 

"Kitana!" Rayden blurted, holding on to Hiko. "How--what? How?" 

"Some very good questions," Kitana admitted. She reached into her boot and withdrew a knife. "Unfortunately, I cannot give you the answers." 

"What are you doing?" Rayden exclaimed, as the mortal approached. Jikan Tai watched her in confusion. She realised that being in the same moment in time, twice, was addling the Guardian and that's why he must have made the mistake in the first place. 

Kitana held the knife tightly. She was taking slow and measured steps towards Rayden and Hiko. "There is a certain path that our lives must take," she said to him, carefully. 

Something in her face must have alerted him immediately. Rayden tried to get to his feet, sheltering his wife. "What are you doing? Kitana! Answer me!" 

Kitana did not answer but a reply was forthcoming: "She is trying to change time, Rayden. She is trying, but she will fail." 

It was Liu Kang, the shimmery radiance of Lightning surrounding him like a veil. He had appeared on the plain, or rather, floating a few feet above. 

"It is a valiant effort, Princess." Liu smiled, enjoying the effect he was having on the mortal. She dropped her knife, staggering backwards as though he had physically struck her. 

She looked ready to faint when someone else suddenly appeared and caught on to her. "Jax?" Rayden blurted, now doubly confused, not sure how the mortal would have been able to break though the barrier Lightning had erected around the Realm. 

Jax was patting Kitana's side frantically, holding her up. "Jikan Tai!" he yelled. "Get going!" 

Jikan Tai seemed to snap out of a trance and aimed his staff, a beam of light slicing through the wind towards the host of Lightning, who shrugged and instantly a shield formed around him, protecting him. 

"This little plan of yours will not succeed," Lightning said, nonchalantly, "as well thought out--" this was said with a snicker, "--as you thought it was." 

Kitana was starting to come out of her moment of shock. She started to make a fighting pose but Jax stopped her. "Don't be stupid," he said, fiercely. "Jikan Tai! We're leaving." 

Jax held something up triumphantly, a small pocket watch. "Time-gate! Get us out of here!" 

Lightning roared in fury and blasted out, to catch the mortals before they slipped side- ways away from her. The blast missed them by a second; but it did not hit empty air. 

It hit Rayden, who had been trying to protect Hiko the entire time. He was so weakened by the previous fights, and trying to save Nova that the blast killed him instantly; he vanished, faded away completely, before he even hit the ground. 

  
The sky overhead was thick with clouds, but great gashes were slashed through it, as though a giant beast had raked its claws over the sky. Jax squinted up through the pounding rain, expecting to see stars in the great tears, but he only saw inky blackness. It came to him in a jolt that the tears were where the Realm was being absorbed into Lightning; the blackness was, in essence, nothing. 

"I have a bad feeling about this," Jax muttered. Kitana was coming back to her senses. 

"You must have taken us to the future--our present, I mean--" She shook her head. "You must know what I mean." 

"I do," he agreed. 

There was a flash, and Jikan Tai appeared. He toppled over, and fell before Jax could catch him. 

"We must get to the Wood--" the Guardian rasped. He was deadly pale and having problems breathing. "I can recuperate...I can regain my energy there..." 

"Jikan Tai, we can't get there by ourselves." Jax tried to help the Guardian up, but the mortal was having problems even standing. Kitana came to help as well. She looked sheepish, and Jax knew she was feeling ashamed for the way she reacted to Lightning. 

A giggle floated over the air. Looking around them, Jax pointed grimly to a spark of light that was coalescing into the shape of a person, a woman, that the mortal knew well. 

"Nova," he said, his voice tight. 

Nova giggled, an extremely psychotic mock-laughter. "I knew you'd be back. Thank you for helping me." She pointed overhead to the shredded remains of the Realm. "I couldn't have done it without you." 

Jikan Tai was standing, now, his arms around both Kitana and Jax, his staff lying on the ground at their feet. His breathing was so laboured that both mortals were afraid he wouldn't make it. "Lightning," he said, rasping. "This has gone on too far." 

"Oh no," she retorted. "It hasn't gone on far enough yet." She raised her arms above her head. Jax recognised the gesture and scrambled to get the time-piece. In his hurry he dropped it. 

  
It was in slow motion that Jax watched the time-piece tumble from his hands to the ground, where the face plate cracked, splinters of glass flying off and scattering. It seemed as though everything around him tunnelled, narrowed to that small moment, that patch of ground. 

Lightning/Nova laughed out loud, clapping her hands, the build-up of energy around her continuing to grow. "Marvellous! This is much better than I thought!" 

Jax heard a sharp intake of breath from Kitana as the watch shattered, and he couldn't blame her. He felt like his heart was about to explode. 

They were trapped. 

The fate of the Omniverse was signed, sealed and delivered. 

Jikan Tai lifted his head, his green eyes glowing. An aura was building around him, a blue-purple field of hazy energy that tickled where it touched Jax and Kitana. Hesitantly, they let him go, but he stayed up-right, growing stronger by the second. 

Lightning watched the display with a faint sneer. "I beat you more than once, Guardian. Why do you continue to try when you know you'll fail?" 

Jikan Tai's response was a single movement. He held his hand stretched out in front of him. 

The energy that had been surrounding him leapt out towards his target, towards Lightning. She created a shield, as a matter of course, but this power was not a wave nor a blast. It was a crackling rope that looped around her shield, tying her in, trapping her within her own defence. 

Jikan Tai stood straighter, more confident than he ever had been. "I have been trying to defeat you since I was small," he said, his voice a growl. "I have been trying to protect those I love all my life, and yet you always seem to resist me. But no more. This is the final battle, Lightning; and I will win, this time, when it matters the most." 

She watched him, actually afraid; the emotion was written plainly on her face. She trembled within the energy net, trying to break through, to set herself free. 

Jikan Tai withdrew his arm, bringing it to a fist that he held tightly to his chest. He closed his eyes, ducking his head. A roar could then be heard. Not a roar of thunder, or of wind, but of water. As though an enormous river was approaching them. 

Jax looked around, as did Kitana, but there was no river to be seen, save for the one in the valley, but that was too far away. 

"No!" Lightning screamed, her voice a shrill cry. "No!" 

"Yes," Jikan Tai remarked simply. He threw out his hand. "Time Stream Release!" 

  
There was an explosion and Jax felt as though he was suddenly being struck on all sides by a powerful jet of water. The force was excruciating, and he blacked out. 

  
Jikan Tai was aware of very little. He held Jax and Kitana within his mental grip, anchoring them down from the effects of the time stream unleashed. He didn't want them to feel what he was feeling. He had controlled his powers for so long he had forgotten what it was like when he couldn't control them: the overload of images and sounds and memories and moments, rushing, cascading over him in a furious deluge that scrubbed him clean and rubbed him raw. A dam had burst and it caught Lightning/Nova within the raging current and the eddies. She screamed, once, a final time, before the undertow dragged her down into the depths.  
...  
Meimei felt very skittery. She remembered this feeling, vaguely, but couldn't place it. Sonya could, however. She was looking around her in blind terror. 

"Lightning," she whispered. "She's come back, some how."  
...  
Meimei felt very skittery. She remembered this feeling, vaguely, but couldn't place it. Sonya could, however. She was looking around her in blind terror for a moment, and then confusion. 

"That was odd," she muttered. "For a moment I thought I could feel Lightning's presence." She shook her head, convinced she was crazy. "I thought she had come back, some how. I must be losing it. Let's get Jax and get out of here." 

  
Jax woke up with great difficulty. He felt as though he was trapped in dark cave; that he had to scramble and climb his way to the exit, a tiny hole that a beam of sunlight was falling through. He was almost there... he could feel the sun on his face... 

He opened his eyes and found he was looking up at a great conifer. The tree was not that wide around, but it stretched so high up that its top dwindled away to nothing. The branches almost obscured the daylight, but a thin gap let the light through and that was what was shining on his face. 

He groaned, wanting to sit up but not having the strength for it. He was lying on a bed of grass, long cool grass that was very comfortable, and very soothing. His whole body hurt; it felt bruised. He looked over to one side and saw Kitana, lying on her stomach, asleep. She seemed unhurt, and she was breathing, so that was good. On his other side was a pool of water. 

He closed his eyes. This wood, the Wood, he corrected himself, felt so peaceful that he could have lain there for days without complaint. Something bothered him about it, however; it was the lack of life. There were no birds and no insects. It should have been teeming but it was deadly still. 

He caught the scent of pine sap and it tickled his nose. He opened his eyes again and sat up. He could see Kitana, lying beside him, but Jikan Tai was nowhere in sight. Alarmed, Jax got to his feet. He scanned the area around him, and thought he could see something just a few meters away, obscured partly by a tree. He started over. 

The guardian lay on his front, spread-eagled, his cape missing and his staff some feet away. Startled and worried, Jax checked the mortal's pulse. It was weak, but steady. Jikan Tai was alive. 

Jax sighed with relief, until he noticed the blood. Jikan Tai's nose and ears were caked with it. It had dried--_how long were we out_? Jax thought--but it didn't seem to be that serious. As far as Jax knew. There were some scratches on the Guardian's neck. Not deep ones, but oddly shaped. After a moment, Jax realised they had been caused by the fasteners to Jikan Tai's cape. They had come loose and scraped along his skin. That's why the cape was missing. 

Jikan Tai's eyes fluttered, but didn't quite open. 

Jax wasn't sure about his first aid, it was serviceable at best, but he knew it was best not to move or wake the Guardian, so he slowly got to his feet and started back to check on Kitana. He was a few feet away from the Guardian when something occurred to him. He jogged back, past the unconscious mortal, and picked up the staff. 

The staff was not that heavy, but it carried a definite weight in the hand. The silvery metal was warm to the touch, even though it had been lying for hours in the grass. 

The jewel on the end, a magnificent red gem that seemed the focusing mechanism for the staff, sported a long crack down the side, that nearly split it in two. Jax ran his finger along it. It was smooth; the jewel was cracked from the inside. 

The human sighed, and rubbed his eyes. He took the staff back with him, when he went back to Kitana. He had a feeling that he should remember which pond he had woken by, and he marked it by ramming the staff into the ground a few inches from the bank. 

  
Kitana began to stir and she groaned as she lifted her head. Her entire being was aching; she felt as thought she had run into a brick wall at a great speed. The grass that she lay on was warm and soft. It smelled fresh and green and she was so tired that she wanted to lay her head back down and sleep some more. But she refused to. 

Jax was leaning against a tree, on the other side than the tree's pool. He was staring off into the distance, but looked over to her as she got up. "Okay?" 

She nodded, realising that was a shortened version of "Are you okay?" 

"You?" she asked. 

He shrugged. "I'll be fine. I'm not so sure about Jikan Tai, though." 

Kitana looked around them in horror, but she couldn't see the Guardian anywhere. 

"He's over there," Jax replied to her unspoken question, gesturing with a thumb. "He's okay, for the moment, I think, but he might have internal injuries, or something." 

"Did he fight Lightning?" Kitana asked, quietly. She did not want to disturb the stillness of the woods. Jax shrugged again. 

"I don't know. But we survived, so something must have happened." Jax started to stretch. That's when she noticed the staff that was standing by the edge of one of the ponds. 

"Is that--?" 

"Yeah. The jewel is broken; Jikan Tai isn't going to be using it any time soon; I thought I might as well use it as a marker." 

"Good thinking. We could very easily become lost here," Kitana agreed. She started to get to her feet. "Where did you say he was? Ah, I see him." 

She started off. Jax didn't follow. 

  
Jikan Tai was lying very still, and for a moment, she thought he was dead, until she saw him breathing. 

"You are very lucky," she said softly, lowering herself down to her knees. There was blood smeared under his nose, and dried in his ears, as well as in thin lines along his neck, but other than that, he seemed okay. No broken bones; whether anything was sprained, she couldn't tell. He was breathing regularly, although it had the same rasp as the last time she had seen him conscious. 

She gently wiped a wisp of bangs from his eyes. His skin was slightly warm, but her touch made him shiver. 

She sighed, still kneeling, and looked around her in dismay. They had no way of getting back to Outworld, or even Earth, from here without the Guardian. There was not even anyway of knowing whether Lightning had been defeated. 

Kitana shivered herself, although she was not cold. She remembered her first meeting with Lightning, the vicious entity that surrounded Liu Kang. In an instant, she realised that she understood Johnny Cage and Sonya Blade's emotional state completely. Lightning _was_evil, and Kitana would do anything herself to see that the malevolent goddess was stopped. For good. 

She looked back down at Jikan Tai and noticed, with a start, that he was looking back up at her. His eyes were nearly fully closed, she could barely see his irises beyond the fringe of eyelash. But he was awake, and he was stirring. 

She leaned over, to help him up, when he suddenly grabbed her arm. His grip was tight, and panicked. "Guardian, it is all right," she whispered to him, frightened. "You are safe." 

"Lightning," he sobbed. "The Guardian, she's dead, and I couldn't help her--or Nova-- couldn't help any of them--" 

The babble did not make any sense to the mortal, but she could feel his anxiety. She stroked his head. "You're safe." 

Tears were welling in his eyes. He was trying to sit up, but was too woozy, too disorientated to manage it, so Kitana helped him. "I'm safe," he repeated, slowly. He took a deep breath, as deep as he could manage, and wiped his eyes on the cuff of his sleeve. He winced as his arm rubbed his nose, and his eyes widened when he saw the blood. 

"You had a nose bleed," Kitana told him, rubbing his shoulder. Despite his powers and the influence he wielded, right now he seemed nothing more than a small boy playing with something he couldn't quite control. He sighed, and took another deep breath. 

"Jax?" he asked, finally. 

"He's okay. He's got your staff; the jewel is broken." 

The Guardian nodded. "I don't need it any more." 

He was trying to get to his feet, now, but the princess held him down. "No, give it a moment." 

He shook his head. "I want to go home." 

That made her pause. "Where is home, Guardian?" 

He looked up at her with confusion and horror written all over his face. "I... I don't know." Then his face crumpled and he started to fall backwards before she caught him. "I'm so tired," he whispered, "I'm so tired of all of this..." 

"Can we get ourselves home from here?" she asked him, cradling him until she could lower him back to the ground, where he immediately curled into a ball. "Is there a way to get home?" 

He nodded. "The pools. Look into the pools and unfocus your mind; you'll see the image of where the pool leads. Then just jump in, if you see what you want." 

She nodded. Kitana started to get to her feet. "Are you coming?" 

"No," he whispered, softly. "Nowhere to go." 

  
"Like hell," Jax snapped at her. He got to his feet, angrily. "We're not leaving him here." 

"He doesn't want to go," Kitana argued. "We can't make him." 

"Oh yes we can." Jax started towards the Guardian's position, but Kitana grabbed his arm. 

"He doesn't have a home," she argued. "He doesn't have anywhere to go." 

Jax laughed sarcastically. "He's human. He's from Earth. That's his home." 

She looked at him in astonishment. "He's from Earth?" 

"Yep." Jax stared at her. "Didn't you know?" 

She shook her head. "No. I did not." 

"Oh. Well. That's settled." Jax started off again. "He can come back to Hong Kong with me, if he's got nowhere else. But I'm not leaving him here, god-knows-where." 

He was by the Guardian's side in a few moments. "Jikan Tai, come on, get up. We're going home." 

"Home?" Jikan Tai's eyes were unfocussed and he was clearly half-asleep. "Where's home?" 

"Where the heart is, of course," Jax replied smartly, getting the Guardian's arm around his shoulder and hefting him to his feet. He had to strain; the Guardian was limp, and it was like trying to manoeuvre a six-foot bag of potatoes. 

"Nova?" Jikan Tai asked, but Jax wasn't sure what he meant, so he let the comment slip by. 

Kitana was by his side in moments, helping to ease the burden. "Let's check the first pond, the pond you woke up by," she suggested. 

"Good idea." Once they were by the pond, Jax let Jikan Tai sit down while the two mortals took their seat by the pool. They looked down, and tried to let their mind go. 

"I see Outworld!" Kitana exclaimed suddenly. 

"I see the Temple of Light..." Jax corrected. "No, wait, I see Outworld. Sonya and Meimei." 

He looked up at her, smiling. "I think this means that they're all right." 

Jikan Tai, overhearing the comment, nodded. "It's all right," he repeated. "Lightning's gone. For good." 

"You defeated her?" Kitana exclaimed. "Did you set the time-line straight?" 

Jikan Tai nodded again, sadly. "Everybody is dead who is supposed to be," he replied, wearily. "Rayden was right. I shouldn't have tried it--" His eyes seemed to roll back and he tipped over, towards the pool. Jax reached over to catch him, but had to strain over the water's edge. When he did so, he felt a strange urge pulling him downwards, and he tipped in. 

  
"Jax!" Sonya exclaimed, running to him. "Where did you come from?" 

Jax sat up from the pavement. He'd somehow hit it face first. "What? Where am I--I'm back in Outworld!" 

"Yeah..." Sonya trailed off. He leapt to his feet and gave her an exuberant hug. 

"It's good to see you again," he said with a broad grin. Then he realised who he was, and who she was, and he hastily let go and backed away. "Sir." 

Sonya was staring at him, brows furrowed and a blush rapidly spreading up her neck and across her face. "What happened? Where's Kitana? Do you know?" 

In answer to her question, Kitana suddenly appeared from out of nowhere. There was no portal, no flash of light; one minute the space was empty and the next it was not. She was supporting someone who was leaning against her heavily. Both goddesses recognised him at once. 

"Jikan Tai!" Sonya exclaimed. She looked to Jax and then to Kitana for an answer. Meimei hurried over and lifted up Jikan Tai's head to stare into his eyes. 

"He needs a healer," she said, startled. "Here, Kitana, give him to me. I'm going to take him to the Hospital." 

"No," Jikan Tai grunted. "No, I want to go home." 

"Home?" Meimei exclaimed, while Kitana was in the process of getting him to lean onto the goddess, instead. "Where's that?" 

"Earth," Jax filled in, helping her support the weight. "I was going to take him to Hong Kong..." 

"He needs a healer," Meimei repeated. 

"The Temple has healers," Jax retorted. "Lin's a healer. She could do it. And then he could rest, too." 

"And help us figure out what happened to Rayden," Sonya added. 

At the mention of the Thunder God's name, Jikan Tai's head snapped up. His breathing was laboured to begin with, but he began to breath faster, as though he was panicked, and as a result he couldn't get enough oxygen, which was causing him to panic more. "Rayden," he croaked, "I didn't mean to--" 

"He's delirious," Kitana blurted, concerned. "It's a long story, but he's been though something traumatic--" 

"Say no more," Meimei said firmly. She snapped her fingers. Instantly his head drooped, his eyes closing and his breathing returning to its normal, laboured state. "There." 

"What did you do?" exclaimed Jax. 

She shrugged. "I put him to sleep." 

"I thought you didn't have powers!" 

"That's not a power!" She shook her head, and shifted Jikan Tai around. "Sonya, can you open the portal? It's too much for me, right now." 

The goddess of Space nodded, and a portal opened, black-rimmed and purple, mixing with the sky overhead. Meimei stepped through, half-dragging Jikan Tai after her. 

The portal closed. 

"Am I going to get the whole story, now?" Sonya asked, politely. As politely as she ever got. 

Jax and Kitana exchanged glances. 

"Jikan Tai--well, I think maybe he should tell that part," Jax finished. 

"What part can you tell me?" his partner asked. 

"Uh...the happy ending?" 

"Which was?" 

"That we won. It was a happy ending. Well, unless you count Jikan Tai being unconscious and possibly delirious..." Jax trailed off. Kitana nodded. 

"I see." Sonya's tone belied the fact that she did not see at all. 

"Where's Johnny?" Jax asked innocently, changing the topic. 

The goddess frowned. "I guess he's still back at the Temple." 

"That reminds me," Kitana said suddenly, looking very thoughtful. "I wish to apologise. I was wrong for what I said to you. I can understand exactly where you are coming from, now." 

"With all due respect," Sonya said icily, "I don't think you can." 

Kitana said nothing, but looked down towards the ground, or over at the buildings; anywhere but at Sonya. "If you would like, I could tell Johnny that you are returning to Earth. I must apologise to him as well." 

"Fine," Sonya said dismissively, waving a hand. "Jax, let's get going. I want to see how Rayden's doing, anyway." 

"Sure," Jax said, distracted. He put a hand on Kitana's shoulder. "Any time you need to, you just pop on over to Hong Kong. It must be stressful leading your people back from the brink of extinction. Tiring, at least." 

Kitana smiled slightly. "Thank you, Jax." 

She turned and left, starting towards the cliff and the Temple. 

"Now you're _really_ going to have to tell me that story," Sonya said firmly. 

  
Meimei appeared in the center of the Temple courtyard. 

While the monks were having their daily meditation. 

She knew a moment later that Sonya had sent her to that precise location because that's what Sonya thought of, when she thought of "The Temple", and she naturally wouldn't take into account the fact that the goddesses had to keep a low profile. 

And teleporting into Quiet Time with a half-dead mortal in her care who obviously wasn't a normal mortal, to judge from the green hair, well, that wasn't exactly low profile. 

She kept her head up high, and started towards the door to Rayden's wing. The monks knew what she was, of course. They'd met Hiko before. And they could probably tell who Meimei was thanks to her white hair. But that didn't mean that they were rushing to help her. 

"Meimei!" someone exclaimed. It was her mother, rushing out of the door. Suyuan had made herself invisible to the mortals, so they wouldn't notice her. "Meimei, what's happened?!" 

"Jikan Tai is hurt," Meimei replied. "We've got to get him to Lindara." 

"She's following Rayden around. I'll get her." Suyuan started off, and then stopped. "No. First I'll teleport you out of here. Too many staring mortals spoil the broth, or something. I can't remember the exact quote." 

She snapped her fingers and Meimei braced herself for the transport. Almost immediately, she was in one of the spare rooms. She laid Jikan Tai down, making sure he was comfortable. It was only when she was done that she realised her mother was near-hysterical, and Meimei didn't know why. 

  
"Lin!" Suyuan cried. "Lin!" 

She came rushing out into the grounds, after teleporting over, and she caught her youngest daughter and her eldest son by surprise. 

"What's the matter?" Lindara exclaimed, leaping to her feet. Beside her, Rayden was sitting on the hill, staring out into the river valley. "What's happened? Is it that weird feeling? I can't sense it any more, but--" 

"No--Jikan Tai is badly hurt," Suyuan gasped out, tired from running. "Meimei's back from Outworld. Something happened to him." 

"Outworld?" Lindara exclaimed. "I didn't know Jikan Tai was going too." 

Suyuan grabbed her daughter by the wrist. "We've got to get going. You know how fragile mortals are." 

"Fragile," Rayden repeated quietly. He hadn't turned or made any sign at all that he knew his mother was there. She stared at him, and then at Lindara, who shook her head sadly. Lin then went and crouched beside Rayden. 

"What's fragile?" she asked her brother, hoping to draw him out for more than a sentence; but he just looked at her blankly and drifted back towards the river valley. Lindara stood again, disappointed, and then she and Suyuan teleported away. 

"It sounds bad," Hiko said sadly. 

He looked at her. "They can take care of it." 

She sighed in agreement and then faded from view. 

  
Jikan Tai opened his eyes. 

He looked, blinking, into a large pair of green eyes not more than a few inches away. 

"He's awake!" Lindara crowed, getting back to her feet. "I did it." 

"We know you would," Meimei said, giving her a pat on the back, but Lindara shook her head, causing her black hair to shimmer in the light. 

"Something was wrong; I wasn't sure if I could help him in time," she replied. "It was almost as though he didn't want to wake up." 

Jikan Tai looked to the ceiling. He was in the Temple of Light, he realised. Rayden's home. Shifting stiffly, he turned himself on to his side, away from the goddesses. 

"What's the matter with him?" Meimei asked, stepping forward. "I don't have a lot of experience with mortals." 

"They're tougher than they look," Lindara answered with the smugness of one who has first hand experience. "But normally they want to get better. You can feel them holding on." 

"And Jikan Tai wasn't?" Meimei frowned. She kneeled by the bed. "Guardian?" 

He didn't answer. 

She tapped his shoulder, and grudgingly, he turned half-around, his bangs flipping into his eyes. "Guardian, would you like anything?" 

He stared at her, uncomprehending. "Would you like something to eat? Drink?" she continued. 

"You would get that for me?" he asked, very quietly. 

"Of course. Would you like anything?" She waited expectantly. 

"A drink of water, please," he managed at last. He was regarding her with curiosity, as though he had never seen a goddess before, although she knew he had, on many occasions. More times than he'd seen mortals, probably. 

"Water. No problem." Meimei got to her feet and padded from the room. Lindara was left, standing at the foot of the bed, looking down on him. He was looking back at her. 

She started to say something, but then she couldn't, and she left the room as well. 

He watched the door for a minute, and then turned back around and closed his eyes. 

  
Sonya was pacing in the kitchen when Meimei stepped in. "Sonya! You're back!" 

The goddess nodded. "How's Jikan Tai?" 

"He's recovering, although Lindara says he's acting strangely. Doesn't want to wake up, something like that. It didn't make any sense to me." Meimei got out a glass and poured it full of water. "Did you find Johnny?" 

"No, he hasn't come back yet," Sonya replied, still pacing. She stopped in her tracks. "Should I be able to sense him, all the time?" 

"What do you mean?" Meimei asked, puzzled. 

"I mean, should I be able to sense him whenever I want to?" the ex-mortal repeated. 

Meimei frowned. "I don't know," she admitted at last. "The scope of your powers is different from deity to deity. I'm not that great with telepathy myself; that's Rayden's pet trick. Why?" 

"I can't sense Johnny at all." Sonya stopped pacing, frustrated. "He's not in Outworld, and he's not here." 

"I thought he was at the Temple," Meimei continued. "Didn't Kitana say--?" 

Sonya shook her head. "He's not there. I checked with Kitana; he wasn't there. I can't sense him anywhere. Maybe I should go talk to Rayden." 

Meimei started to protest, but before she could stop Sonya, the goddess teleported away. Cursing under her breath, Meimei realised there was nothing she could do and she took the water to Jikan Tai. By the time she entered his room, he was back on his side. She wasn't sure if he was sleeping or not, so she left the water by the bed and crept out. 

  
"Rayden?" Sonya appeared outside, standing next to the thunder god. "Rayden? Can I talk to you for a minute?" 

He didn't reply, or even look up at her. He was simply sitting, watching the sun set over the mountains that framed the river valley. The goddess had to admit it was a beautiful view. 

The mountains were a lush green and sharply contrasted with the silvery ribbon that was the river snaking its way along the floor of the valley. She wondered, briefly, what it must have looked like before there were humans; before the river was tainted brown and the mountain forests showed the signs of clear-cutting. 

She sat down next to him. Normally--back when she was a mortal--she hadn't been able to read him at all, and had gotten along fine without the ability. Now, she should have been able to read him perfectly, but couldn't. And that disturbed her. 

"I can't find Johnny anywhere," she said without preamble, almost not expecting a reply. Rayden surprised her. 

"So?" he asked. 

She blinked. "I--I can't sense him, at all. Should I be able to?" 

"For what it's worth, yes," he sighed. He hadn't taken his eyes from the sunset. 

"What are you talking about, 'for what it's worth'?" Sonya snapped. "This is Johnny we're talking about." 

"I know." 

"He's missing!" 

"So?" 

She nearly exploded. "So? How can you say that? He's one of your friends!" 

He turned then, and gazed right at her. She was shocked by how hollow his eyes were; how dull they looked. "It doesn't matter. That's why I'm not upset. It doesn't mean anything." He turned away. 

Sonya paled. "How can you say that it doesn't matter? Of course it matters." 

"Not in the great scheme of things," he sighed. "Life, death, mortals, deities--nothing matters. It doesn't make a difference." 

"This is about Hiko, isn't it," Sonya said, sadly. 

He turned sharply. "No." 

"Yes it is," she continued. "And I can tell you right now that Hiko's death, and Nova's and Liu's, made a huge difference, one that effected the entire Omniverse. We wouldn't be here right now, if it wasn't for them." 

"That's the whole point," Rayden snapped, growing angry. "Even if we weren't here, it wouldn't make a difference!" 

"Now you're just talking in circles!" Sonya got to her feet. "You're worrying the daylights out of your family because of this!" 

Rayden ignored her. 

"Don't turn away when I'm talking to you," Sonya said coldly. He looked up at her, scowling. 

"Don't take that tone of voice with me," he snapped. 

"I'll use whatever tone I want to. You aren't the one in charge here, Rayden. You need to snap out of it and take a good, hard, long look at what you're doing to those around you." 

One of his eyebrows arched up. "At what I'm doing." 

"Yes." She crossed her arms. 

He laughed scornfully. "I'm tired of being the one trying to make everything better. Do you know what I've learned, Sonya? That no matter what I do, it's not going to make a difference. That's what Jikan Tai showed me. We scurry around, trying to make everything as good as we can make it, when it doesn't really have any point at all." He got to his feet and promptly vanished. 

Sonya scowled and swore. "Dammit." 

"Sonya?" Lindara stepped out of the door, her eyes wide. "What in the Creator's name was that all about? What did you think you were doing?" 

"Someone had to talk some sense into him," Sonya snapped. Already, though, she was starting to feel a little guilty; not that she would ever admit to it. "He was worrying you and the others sick." 

Lindara was staring at her in horror. "You told him off because he's feeling upset? His wife just died!" 

"I know that!" Sonya fumed. "I've lost partners before! Admittedly, I haven't lost a spouse or a daughter before, but that doesn't mean he can just throw everybody for a loop!" The Plant goddess was blinking in confusion, but Sonya just plowed on. 

"I miss Liu terribly, and I know Johnny does too, but we haven't gone catatonic over it! We've picked up our lives and tried to make a go of it! So what if one of our best friends is dead because of us!" Sonya ended her tirade with a suppressed sob. She stopped, breathing hard, her eyes welling with tears, her hands balled into fists. "I have to go find Johnny." 

She disappeared. 

Lindara waited about two seconds before she did an about face and flew back into the Temple. 

  
Rayden sat on the edge of his bed. Of his and Hiko's bed. If he closed his eyes, he could still feel her presence beside him. It had been a month since the battle. A month to grieve. To try and learn to move on. He should have been able to do it. He'd grieved for others before. So why couldn't he now? 

_I wish I could hear your thoughts, again_, he thought out loud to her. _I wish you would ask me what I was thinking. I wish you would ask me to make you dinner. I even wish you would yell at me about disturbing your rose bushes. And then I could make it up to you_. 

There was only silence in response. 

_I wish you had told me about Nova before. I wish you had never married Cosmos, even if it was to protect me._

He paused for a moment, looking around the room, a life-time's worth of memories crammed into one tiny space. 

_I wish you were still here._

He got up, and teleported from the room. 

  
  



	3. Chapter 3

Johnny Cage, God of Fire, was in a place he had never been before. 

Half a second ago, he had stepped through a portal, trying to go to Xiatian, the capital of Outworld. And he had appeared here. 

"Here" was a black and dark Realm. There seemed to be no horizon or sky, although he was sure he was outside; There was a ground, under his feet, but there were no stars or a moon, although something shone down, illuminating where he stood. It wasn't Earth; he could feel it in his bones. It wasn't Outworld, either. And it sure as hell wasn't Maresium. 

"Hello?" he called out. "Is there anybody here?" 

"Are you blind?" replied a voice as a figure stepped out into the light. "Can you not sense us at all?" 

Johnny squinted. He didn't know the deity at all. But now that he thought about it--there were several people around him. He couldn't see them in the feeble light, but they were there. "I'm still new at this sensing stuff." 

"Even children can sense those around them," the person sneered. It was tall, solidly built man, dressed in a pants-and-shirt ensemble not unlike Johnny's. 

"Like I said, I'm new to it all." The god looked around him. "Where is this?" 

"Our Realm," the man continued. "Gorgeous, innit? That's why we don't bother living here." 

"Shut up, Lem." A woman's voice intruded, and Johnny whirled around, trying to put a face to the sound. 

"Let me handle this, Eler." Lem stepped forward until he was only a few feet from Johnny. "We were asked to talk some sense into you." 

"Oh?" Johnny tried to sound nonchalant, but now that he was paying attention and using his powers, he could tell that something wasn't right with these people. They weren't gods. They weren't mortals, either, but they definitely were not deities. "People have tried talking sense into me in the past. I'm very resistant to it." 

Lem laughed. "We have our ways. This is the deal, Cage--you have to give up your powers." 

"Excuse me?" Johnny looked at him askew. 

"You have to give up the Fire powers," Lem repeated, very slowly, and heavy on the sarcasm. "Get it now?" 

"I'm not giving them up," Johnny replied simply. He looked around him. "You know what? I'm growing tired of this conversation." 

He threw his arms into the air and a fireball exploded over his head. The people gathered in the circle screamed at the sudden light and heat. Many of them ducked or jumped backwards; the circle was broken. He dashed through one of the gaps. 

"Get him!" screamed Lem, the first to recover. 

"Leave that to me," retorted Eler. "Rope!" 

Something materialised around Johnny's legs. He tripped, falling face first into the hard ground. He put out his hands to catch himself, and then rolled on to his back. Some kind of energy was woven around his ankles binding them together. He dispelled it with a thought. He jumped to his feet. 

The people were starting to come forward, but now there was a definite sense of uneasiness. 

"He broke through that too easily," another woman commented, fearful. "What if he can control his powers?" 

"I can hear you," Johnny said in a sing-song voice. "And you're right. I can control my powers." There was a sudden ring of fire that whipped up around the group, although far enough away to keep them from harm. "I just don't bother, most of the time." 

Lem's face was pale, but he was keeping a grip on his emotions. "If you kill us, they'll come after you." 

"Who? The people coming after me already?" Johnny inquired. "That reminds me. You never mentioned their names." 

"We won't--" Eler began, but she was cut off by assorted screams as the ring started to close in on them. 

"Try again," Johnny said sharply. "You'll find I have a red-hot temper to go with my new Fire powers, which I plan on keeping, thank you very much." 

"It's--" began someone else, before Lem clamped a hand over his mouth. 

"Shut up!" the apparent leader hissed. 

"I'm waiting," the god called out. The ring advanced another few inches. "I'm not a very patient person, either." 

"It's Turan!" Eler cried, grabbing Lem's arm and yanking him away from the other. "It's Turan!" 

"Okay..." Johnny gestured slightly and the ring receded slightly. "Next question: why?" 

"He hired us to convince you to give up the powers," Eler continued. The ring moved outward. "He said that you didn't have any control over your powers, that you were a disgrace." 

"And what were you supposed to do, if I didn't choose to go along with anything?" Johnny asked, calmly digesting the information and storing it so he could ask Meimei or Lindara. 

"Kill you," Eler said, simply. "Kill you with magic, and let the powers become absorbed back into the Omniverse." 

"Good going," Lem snarled. "Why don't you just hand him our heads on a silver platter, while you're at it?" 

"It wouldn't work, he'd just defeat us," Eler snapped at him. "I'm not going to die just because some god didn't think things through." 

"You are mortal!" Johnny exclaimed triumphantly. "I knew that something wasn't right!" 

"We're not mortals--we're--" Eler began, before Lem reached out towards her with a sudden movement. She screamed and faded from view, in a puff of smoke. 

He turned to Johnny with a sneer on his face. "You're not getting any more from us. Teleport!" 

There was a flash of light and the group vanished from the plain, taking the light with them. 

Johnny sighed, but stretched out with his powers. Some sort of shield had fallen away, and he could tell where he was. It was a Realm, of some sort, but broken and empty. He could teleport again, he realised; so he created a small portal and stepped through. 

  
Lindara burst into the kitchen, her eyes wild. Suyuan was feeding the boys their supper. At her entrance, both children stopped flinging food at each other to stare up at her. 

"Lin?" her mother asked. "What's the matter?" 

"I need to talk to you," Lindara said, urgently. "Right now. In private." 

"I'm almost done feeding the boys--" 

"Right _now_." There was something in Lin's voice that made Suyuan look up and stare at her daughter in confusion. 

"Lindara--what's the matter? Your energy is all over the place..." 

"Mother, when you're done, meet me in my room, okay? Please? I need to talk to you." Lindara paused, then ran from the kitchen, leaving her family to glance at each other in bewilderment. 

"Auntie Lin is weird," Jih commented. 

"Eat your rice," his grandmother replied. 

  
"Johnny!" 

He looked around as Sonya appeared, only a few feet from him. "Where have you been?" she continued, furious. "I was looking everywhere--you could have told us you weren't coming--" 

"Whoa... back up there." Johnny held up his hands in surrender. "You found me, and I didn't exactly have a choice in where I went, okay?" 

"What?" Sonya blurted. "What are you talking about?" 

He pulled on her arm, leading her over towards an unoccupied room. His voice dropped. "Have you heard of anyone named Turan?" 

"No, should I have?" she replied, in a whisper. "What's going on?" 

"I'm not sure yet," he admitted. "But I was going through your portal and I got... detoured. This guy named Turan, he wants me to give up my powers." 

"What? Why?" She looked at him in bafflement. 

"If I knew that, I wouldn't be so confused myself. I was just wondering if you had heard anything, seen anything." 

"Nothing," she admitted. 

He sighed, rubbing a hand through his hair. "Well. That's good, at least. So. How's Rayden doing?" 

The innocent question struck a nerve. Sonya scowled. "I don't know. I managed to get him to say more than three words, but it was just to tell me off." 

The god laughed. "That's our Sonya." 

She punched him in the shoulder. "It's not funny. Something's really affected him, strangely." 

"You mean, like the death of his wife and two close friends?" Johnny inquired. "That will drive anybody a little loco." 

"I know that. There's something else, though. He's shut himself off from me, I can't sense him at all." She shook her head. "It's making me worried, I can't even imagine how his family is taking it." 

"Probably the same way you are." 

She rolled her eyes, suppressing a chuckle. 

"Did I just make the Lady Sonya laugh?" Johnny pantomimed shock and horror. "Creator forbid!" 

She smiled. "What were you told about taking names in vain?" 

"I wasn't in vain. I was perfectly serious. Hey, did you meet up with Jax?" Johnny asked suddenly. 

"Yeah--" Sonya paused. "You didn't hear about what happened, did you!" 

"No--I was busy torturing mortals," Johnny replied, ignoring her stunned expression. "I'll explain later. What happened?" 

"Jikan Tai showed up, half-dead. Lin's healed him, he's as good as new, but he's not talking." Sonya sighed. "Nobody knows what's happened to him--except Jax and Kitana, and they aren't talking, either. Not that clarity is Kitana's strong suit, but I expected it of Jax, at least." 

"What?" Johnny frowned at her. "Replay, please?" 

She sighed again, this time with frustration. "Jax and Kitana apparently disappeared, had some sort of an adventure with Jikan Tai, in which he was seriously wounded, before they brought him back here." 

"Oh." Johnny nodded, although he wasn't sure if he understood or not. "So we have two comatose trauma patients on our hands?" 

"Rayden's not comatose any more," Sonya replied smartly. 

"Oh, right. You pissed him off. I forgot." 

She rolled her eyes again. "I simply had a talk with him." 

"I can fully understand where he's coming from, if they're anything like the talks you give me," Johnny replied innocently. She punched him again. 

"That's not funny. I know he's had some serious shocks over the past few months, but that doesn't mean--" 

"Whoa." Johnny held up his hands again. "What did you say?" 

She stared at him, confused. "I said, he's had some serious shocks over the past few months-- " 

"The battle was only a month ago," Johnny corrected her. "I know it seems like longer, but-- " 

She shook her head. "I meant Lightning--that was a shock to his system, to be sure, and Hiko, and then finding out about Nova..." She trailed off, looking at him. "What?" 

"What about Nova?" he asked quietly. 

She stared at him, her mouth dropping in shock. "You mean you don't know about--? But I thought he would have told you--" 

"Told me _what_?" Johnny blurted, his voice suddenly very loud in the stillness. 

"That Nova is--was--his daughter," Sonya explained, keeping her voice low in demonstration. Her eyes widened in shock. "He didn't tell you!" 

Johnny took a deep breath, trying to take it in. "I don't understand--how could Nova be his daughter? She was Cosmos'." 

"I don't know the circumstances or the details," the goddess admitted. "I was in a mindlink with Rayden when Nova told him. Apparently Hiko kept it a secret, to protect them from something." 

Johnny was lost in thought. "He didn't mean to tell you?" 

"He didn't tell me," she corrected. "I overheard, by chance--I was in a mindlink with everyone, I didn't know how to switch it off, yet." 

"He didn't tell me," Johnny answered, grimly. "I'm sure he had his reasons--but did he tell his family?" 

Sonya paled, something coming back to her. "Oh my god." 

"What?" 

"I think I may have let it slip to Lindara..." she breathed. "That's why she looked so confused... I just assumed he would have told them by now... I don't think they know at all!" 

"Poor Rayden." Johnny shook his head sadly. "Carrying around something like this all by himself. No wonder he's falling apart at the seams." 

  
Lindara was pacing when Suyuan entered her room. "Mother. Good. I need to ask you a few things." 

"Such as?" Suyuan began, but her daughter took her by the elbow and led her over to the bed. 

"Sit down, first. This might take a while..." Lindara took a deep breath. "How close were Rayden and Hiko?" 

"Very, you know that," Suyuan snapped. "Don't go dredging, Lin, Rayden's in--" 

"I know, Mother, let me finish. How close were they when I was little?" 

"When? What?" 

Lindara sighed. She stopped pacing for a minute. "When I was a baby, back when Shao Khan first attacked Maresium--_how close were they_?" 

"They were good friends, as far as I know," Suyuan answered. "I was just as surprised as anyone when they got together." 

"And how close were Hiko and Cosmos?" 

At the mention of the deity's name, Suyuan paled, then flushed with anger. "What are you bringing _him_ up for? You know how upset that gets me!" 

"I don't mean to upset you, Mother. I don't. I just need some information, that's all." Lindara resumed pacing, obviously trying to figure out something in her head. "I know that when Hiko was married to Cosmos, Rayden didn't see much of her. When did they stop being friends? Do you know?" 

"No," Suyuan answered, truthfully. "I didn't see much of Rayden then. He was busy with the Mortal Kombats, he was at Earth so often, he rarely came to visit." 

Lindara frowned. "And he didn't tell you? Tell you what was going on?" 

"Yes, he told me about the Mortal Kombats," her mother answered. "Lin, does this have a point?" 

"Yes, but I don't think I've reached it, yet. I don't want to go hurling accusations." 

"Accusations!" Suyuan exclaimed. "What sort of accusations?" 

"Nothing, Mother. It's nothing." _Yet_, Lin added silently. "Who was closest to Rayden during that time?" 

"Well, I suppose Kerlan," Suyuan mused. "They were always good friends, even since they were small. Meimei was around him a lot, she visited Earth fairly frequently--" 

"Meimei!" Lindara burst out. "Meimei would know. Thank you, Mother, you've been a great help." 

"Well, that's good," Suyuan replied, still confused. "I guess. Are you going to tell me what it is you're trying to figure out?" 

"No, not yet. I need to talk to Meimei, first." Lindara took a deep breath, and teleported from the room. 

"Grandma?" Yueh poked his small head around the door. "Grandma?" 

"I'm here, darling," Suyuan replied. He ran into to the room, stopping at her lap. 

"Mama said to tell you that's she gone to visit Papa for a bit," he said. 

"When? Just now?" Suyuan exclaimed. 

"She left a few minutes ago," Yueh added. His grandmother sighed. 

"I suppose that's all right. Lin will be annoyed, though--where's your brother?" she asked, suddenly suspicious. 

"Jih's playing with the monks," Yueh answered. 

"Oh no." Suyuan got to her feet. "Not again. I guess I'd better stop him. Come on." She headed for the door, the child tagging along behind her. 

  
"Did you find Johnny?" Jax looked up from the paperwork. Sonya nodded and sat down at the edge of the bed. 

"Yeah, I did. He says he was kidnapped." 

Jax whistled. "Great excuse. What some people will say--" 

Sonya held up a hand. "I believe him, Jax. I think he's telling the truth." 

"Really?" Jax sat up, taking notice. "Is it anything we can help with?" 

"I don't think so," Sonya replied. "Not yet, anyway." 

"Sonya--" Jax began, hesitant. She gestured for him to continue. "I want to go back to Hong Kong." 

"What? Now? Why?" she exclaimed. 

"I've been looking over these notes on the knife. Shao Khan's. I talked to Kitana about it, briefly, too, and I think one of us needs to be at the base in case something comes up." He got to his feet. For some reason, he felt more comfortable when he was at attention. Go figure. 

"I can't leave yet," she breathed. "I've still got this thing with Johnny to figure out, and Rayden-- " 

"That's why I said _one_ of us needs to go. I know you need to stay here. Send me back, I'll wade through some of the paperwork, let you know what's happening, okay?" Jax gave her a look. 

She sighed and ran a hand over her hair, which was tightly pulled back in its pony-tail. "You're right." 

"I've been thinking about this a lot--what?" Jax blurted. He frowned. "Did you just agree with me?" 

"Yes," she replied. "I think it's a good idea. You're right." 

"Whoa..." he trailed off. "Is something the matter? Are you not feeling okay? Fever?" 

"I'm fine," she snapped. 

"That's better. I thought you might have been possessed there, for a minute." Jax smiled at her. She didn't smile back, but shook her head. 

"Between you and Johnny, the hilarity never ends. Okay, I'll portal you back to Hong Kong-- but you have to promise to send me regular reports," she insisted. "I don't like the thought of backing out of work, but--" 

"You're needed here. I think we covered this," Jax replied. 

Lindara teleported into the empty room. Meimei wasn't here. "Damn," she muttered, storming out the door and nearly running Rayden down. 

"Sorry, Rayden," she replied automatically. Her eyes widened. "Rayden!" 

"Yes?" he looked at her irritatedly. "What is it? Why do you look like you've seen a..." he trailed off, leaving his sentence unfinished. 

"I have to talk to you," she blurted. "I was talking to Sonya--" 

"Is Meimei not here?" he interrupted, craning his neck. "Hmmm. I guess I can talk to her later." He turned and stormed down the corridor. 

"Rayden, wait up," Lindara cried, running after. "Rayden, I was talking to Sonya, and she said something peculiar, and I was wondering--" 

Rayden teleported away. 

"Dammit!" she swore under her breath, kicking at the wall in frustration. Why was nobody paying her any attention? 

"Problem?" someone asked, behind her. She whirled, startled, to see the Guardian come out from one of the rooms. He was still pale, and looked tired. No, weary. 

_Why does everyone around here look so tired of life_? she wondered, absent- mindedly. 

"No, no problem," she said out loud. "I was just trying to talk to Rayden, and, well--" Lindara gestured at the dead end. 

"Ah." Jikan Tai nodded very slowly. He turned and started to go back into his room. 

"Guardian, wait for a moment," she said, breathless as an idea struck her. Perhaps Jikan Tai could share what information he had. He knew Rayden during the period she was curious about. "Can I ask you something?" 

He nodded, curious. 

"How close were Rayden and Hiko, while she was married to Cosmos?" the goddess asked. 

He frowned, his eyes narrowing. "Why do you wish to know?" 

She paused, uncertain of what to tell him. "I was just curious." 

"If Lord Rayden does not wish to tell you, I do not see why I should," Jikan Tai replied simply, before he started back into his room. She tugged on his sleeve, to hold him in the hallway. 

"Please, Guardian," she pleaded, "Just one little thing. It's all I need to know: how close were they?" 

"I don't know exactly," he replied honestly, after taking a long moment to make his decision. "I only know that they still cared about each other. They never got a moment alone while she was married to Cosmos. I know that, though. He was very zealous about keeping them apart." 

Lindara nodded, heaving a great sigh. "Thank you, Guardian. You have been a great help to me. Thank you." 

"It is no problem," he replied stiffly. "Lady Lindara--may I ask you a question?" 

"Of course," she said, smiling. "Anything at all." 

"I was wondering if you could show me where the kitchen is--I have not eaten in a long while-- " 

Her hand flew to her mouth. "I thought Meimei was watching over you! I never thought to ask- -! Oh, that's terrible!" 

"It is no problem, I will simply--" he began, uncomfortable, but she grabbed him by the arm. 

"I'll make you something to eat. I'm not the cook that Rayden is, but I get by," she said proudly. "Come on. The kitchen is this way." 

She started down the hall, half-dragging the Guardian behind her. 

  
Rayden sighed as he teleported back out to the hill side. His heart was pounding. He wished he knew where Meimei was; he really needed to talk to her. But she was gone, and he didn't want to use his powers to sense her. 

"Why would do you need to talk to her anyway?" asked Hiko gently, coming up behind him. She snuggled into his arm. "You've gone all tense." 

"Just worried," he replied softly, trying to keep his mind clear and unfocussed. Gradually, she began to fade until he was alone again on the hill side. 

With a huge sigh of relief, he settled back down on the grass, closing his eyes, thankful for the escape. 

  
Sonya waved goodbye to her partner and closed the portal. She sighed, deeply, wondering if it was the right decision after all. She was needed in Hong Kong, but she was needed here, too, and she was very torn. But in the end she accepted the fact that Jax could work without her, and she started to leave her bedroom. 

_Sonya_? 

Johnny sounded surprised, and occupied with something else. 

_Yes_? she thought out to him. 

_Help would be good_, was all he replied before the mindlink faded completely. Confused, she tried to re-establish it and she realised that someone else--someone she didn't know-- was with Johnny and was shielding their thoughts from her. 

She blinked and teleported to the main corridor, where she knew Johnny to be. As she reappeared, the first thing she noticed was the sheer, oppressive heat in the corridor. That wasn't right, it was evening--a sudden explosion of fire answered all her questions. Most of her questions. 

"Johnny!" she cried, shielding her face from the searing blast. "What the hell...?" 

"Him," Johnny said succinctly, popping into existence beside her. She gasped as a figure started to approach through the ring of fire that Johnny had created. 

He was a god, that was immediately obvious. His hair was a dark blue, almost navy, and stood out in spikes. He was taller than the average deity and wide at the shoulders. He looked as though he could pick up either of them up with one hand and lift them over his head. 

And he wasn't affected by fire. 

Sonya took her eyes off the stranger long enough to notice the bruise that was beginning to form on Johnny's face. Something large had struck him, and struck him hard. "Johnny--" 

"Can't talk, fighting," he snapped back, releasing another round of fire energy. This was strong enough to cause the interloper to stagger backwards. "Help would be good." 

Sonya nodded, and took a deep breath. She gathered her powers around her, not quite sure what to do. Her techniques revolved around shields and telepathy--although she knew Cosmos to be adept in other regions as well. But perhaps a shield would work in this situation. "Give him another blast," she instructed Johnny, quickly. 

He nodded, and created another fire wave before the intruder had time to collect his bearings, and Sonya created a shield around him. Around the stranger. 

The moment she did, Johnny broke off his attack. The shield would have simply reflected any more fire blasts back at them. But it also contained the other explosion around the deity, who was unable to move and clearly showing signs of wear. 

There was a shout behind them and Suyuan came skidding around the corner. "What's going on?" she roared in anger, although within a moment she could see for herself. She paled for a moment, then drew herself to her full height, just as the fire ring finally collapsed, having burnt itself out. The deity staggered against the wall, breathing hard but not yet out for the count. He glared at Suyuan. 

Her powers were starting to cackle around her, a breeze beginning to pick up in the hallway, refreshing the air and dissipating any remnants of Johnny's fires. "Get out," she said quietly, in a menacing tone that neither Johnny nor Sonya could ever have suspected her of making. "You are not wanted here." 

"I _will_ finish my mission," the deity growled, before disappearing in a murky mist that left a funny smell behind, one that was quickly dispersed by Suyuan's breeze. The goddess relaxed somewhat, but remained on guard. 

"Who was that?" Sonya asked, after she regained her composure. 

"That," Johnny replied, after casting a look to Suyuan, "was Turan." 

  
"And then he backhanded me--" Johnny continued, wincing as Lindara laid a hand on his face, to heal the welt. 

"Then what did you do?" Suyuan asked, her eyes wide. Sonya and Jikan Tai were gathered around the table as well, getting the first hand account. Suyuan, Sonya and Johnny had come to ask Lindara to help and found her in the kitchen with the Guardian. 

"Well, first I ricocheted off the wall, and then I--" Johnny grinned to himself, but when none of the others grinned with him, the smile faltered and he picked up, seriously. "I tried to fight back, just using kicks and punches, but it was like I was hitting a wall. A very solid wall." 

Both Suyuan and Lindara nodded, the elder making tsk-tsk noises. "Turan is very... solid," the Goddess of Winds commented. "Almost indestructible. He's designed to be that way." 

"Designed? Somebody _made_ him?" Sonya and Johnny both exclaimed at once. 

Lindara frowned. "Not in the sense you mean--he's the God of Assassins, and the power means that he becomes hard to kill. Being invulnerable is part of his power, you see." 

"He's not very stealthy, for an assassin," Johnny commented dryly, as Lindara moved away, her healing job complete. "He teleported in, told me he was going to kill me, and then proceeded to try to. Not very subtle at all." 

"He doesn't have be," Suyuan replied simply. "He's not like mortal assassins. He doesn't need to sneak around." 

"He's very efficient," Lindara commented. "I met him at a festival, once. He's blunt, but honest." She smiled and patted her hair. "He told me that I was very attractive." She noticed everyone staring at her. "What?" 

"Lindara's flirting aside--" Johnny began, but Suyuan interrupted him. 

"When was this?" she exclaimed. 

"Three Festivals ago," her daughter remarked. "Why? Oh, you're not thinking--" 

"That's exactly what I'm thinking," Suyuan remarked sourly. "What have I told you about flirting with dangerous deities? Turan is completely incompatible, anyway." 

"Well, yes, but I never said I was flirting back. I can't help it if he finds me attractive." 

"Yes you can. Go out of your way to make sure he doesn't. I'm not having God of Assassins as a son-in-law. It's bad enough that Tai Hou is the son of Shimauma--" 

"I like Tai Hou," Lindara replied, shocked. 

"I do as well, he's a lovely boy, but that doesn't change the fact that he's the son of the god of Safari Parks. Besides, you're getting off the point that Turan--" 

"Was trying to kill me," Johnny interrupted, very loudly. Both Lindara and Suyuan looked a little ashamed at being caught so far off topic. Sonya looked irritated. Jikan Tai looked a little confused. 

"Oh. Yes. Well." Suyuan cleared her throat. "There's not much you can do about _that_." 

"What?" Johnny exclaimed. "What are you talking about? Of course I have to do something!" 

Lindara laid a hand on his arm to calm him. "Johnny, you have to understand something about Turan. He's a very practical, dedicated sort of deity. He must have a good reason for whatever he's doing." 

Sonya began to laugh out loud. The others stared at her in disbelief. 

"I knew it would take something like this to make her laugh," Johnny muttered. "All right, Blade, what's so funny?" 

"Just this entire situation," Sonya explained. She spread her arms out. "This whole deal. You and I, Johnny, are now gods. Immortal, from a human point of view. And there's less we can do in this situation than an ordinary mortal could do." 

"I am not following you at all," Johnny muttered, brows furrowed. 

"There's only one course of action for you to take, Cage: run away." 

"Now I'm really not following you," Johnny said, after a moment, cleaning out his ear, "Because I thought I heard you say--this is really funny, too--to run away." 

She nodded, and Suyuan and Lindara nodded with her. "Go to Maresium. You can declare it off-limits to Turan, and boom! Every time he tries to step into it, his powers are gone, while you're at your peak. You're safe." 

"Safe, and trapped," he added. 

"That's true," Lindara admitted. "But we can start working on finding out what's caused him to act this way. Maybe even convince him to leave you alone." 

"Or even take it straight to the Council," Suyuan continued. "They can order him to leave you alone, if they feel he's not justified." 

"Not justified!" Johnny exclaimed. "He's trying to kill me because he thinks I'm embarrassing, and you think he could be justified?" 

Suyuan and Lindara didn't say anything in response, and both Johnny and Sonya stared at him in shock. "You... you don't think he's justified, do you?" the god asked, quietly, in horror. 

Suyuan fidgeted with his robes. "No, of course not," she said finally. "It's just that--we could see how he could get this into his head. No doubt a lot of the deities are uneasy about mortals with powers. Especially Elemental powers." 

"They didn't mind when Nova gave them the powers," Jikan Tai said quietly, staring very hard at Lindara, until she began to blush from the attention. It was clear to Johnny that the Guardian was trying to see where she sat in relation to the matter; but the plant goddess cleared her throat and turned away. 

"That was a totally different thing," Suyuan said, at last. "First, it was seen as a desperate measure. And secondly, I'm sure most thought it was... temporary, that Nova would reclaim the powers once the battle was over." 

"And then there is the question of the Realms," Lindara agreed. "I'm sure most would see Maresium or Usirapi--especially Maresium--inhabited by a mortal Lord as...as..." 

"Blasphemous?" Sonya offered. "Unholy? Sacrilegious? Ungodly?" 

Johnny and Jikan Tai both smirked but neither goddess did. 

"Rude," Lindara finished. "Vulgar. Maresium is the home of Hisan. She was..." 

"She was special, even among the deities, even among the Elders," Suyuan agreed. "She was from the days of the First Realm. And to have her Realm fall into the hands of a mortal--" 

"We're not mortal now, everyone seems to forget this," Johnny pointed out. 

"You have powers, and the lifespan, but you're not truly deities," Lindara corrected. "You're-- " 

"Something in between?" Jikan Tai asked. His face betrayed no emotion. To a mortal. To a deity, however, the hostility was rolling off him in waves that were nearly visible. 

Lindara paled, and her mother leapt in to her defence. "It is not at all what you think, Guardian," Suyuan said, emphasising the title. "They were given powers, but they were not raised with them. They have no knowledge of our histories, our rules, our beliefs--" 

"The prince and the pauper," Sonya said suddenly. "We're commoners suddenly left in charge of the kingdom. And the aristocrats aren't happy about it." 

Lindara and Suyuan exchanged glances and nodded silently. 

Johnny snorted loudly. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard." 

"Oh?" his friend asked. 

"I'm not going to give up my life _or_ my powers just because I don't sit well with people I've never met. I'm not going to let Turan decide how my life is going to be spent." Johnny got up from his chair, but Suyuan pulled him down. 

"Johnny, please, listen to me. Turan is dangerous. I agree with you, you shouldn't be afraid for yourself. I'm simply telling you where he's getting his ideas from. Please, sit down." 

He sat. 

"Go to Maresium. He won't be able to get at you there, and in the meanwhile, Sonya and I will go to the Council, we'll try and get them to stop him." 

"I want to go," Lindara blurted. 

"You stay here, and look after Rayden. I don't want him left alone," Suyuan informed her. "Meimei's going to be gone for a few days--she's gone to visit Tai Hou, something important came up-- and Jikan Tai needs someone around as well." 

"No I don't," he blurted, surprised. 

She turned on him with a motherly look. "Of course you do, dear. You haven't healed properly. Lin will take care of you, don't worry." 

She shot her daughter a look to say _you had better make sure he doesn't worry_. 

"If that's what you want, Mother," Lindara sighed. "I had hoped to see Meimei--" 

"You can see her later. This, and Rayden, takes precedence." The goddess got to her feet. "Sonya?" 

"Are we going now?" Sonya exclaimed. "I thought--" 

"No time like the present. Johnny, are you ready?" she asked him. 

"Yeah, no problem," he replied, also getting to her feet. 

Suddenly something occurred to Lindara. "Wait a second! What about the boys?" 

Suyuan paused. "You'll have to take care of them." 

"Both of them?" Lindara wailed. "I can't, they don't listen to me--" 

"You'll have to," Suyuan persisted. "I can't take them to the Hall, they'll run away. And it's about time you helped with babysitting. Meimei's busy, and Rayden's--Jikan Tai! You like children, don't you?" 

"I--" he began. 

"Good. That takes care of it." The elder goddess turned back to Johnny. "We'll come to Maresium when we find out what's going to happen." 

He nodded, and with a jaunty wave teleported away in a flash of orange and yellow. 

"Come on, Sonya," Suyuan said next. Before they left, she turned to her daughter. "Just try and keep the boys out of trouble. Don't let Jih bother the monks; and watch out for Yueh's habit of eating dirt. He gets into puddles and makes pies and so on. If you run into too much trouble, get one of your uncles to come over. Naturalis is useless, they run right over him." All this was said in a rush; Lindara just sat, bewildered, looking as though it was all a bad dream. 

"I'm ready," Sonya announced. Suyuan nodded, and she teleported away, the Goddess of Space following a moment later. 

Lindara took a deep breath, realising suddenly that she'd forgotten to breathe. She looked to Jikan Tai with a sense of pity. "You go back, and rest. I can look after things here; no point in both of us suffering." 

"Are the boys that bad?" the Guardian asked, quietly. She sighed, and rubbed her temples. 

"They don't listen to me. I mean, they do; but all they say is 'Okay, Auntie Lin', and then totally disregard everything that I've been saying. It was such a shock, when Meimei brought them here two weeks ago; Tai Hou's father had a problem, you see, and so _he_ couldn't look after the little horrors and what with Mother and Meimei here already in case Rayden needed them..." Lindara trailed off. 

"Are they that bad?" 

"No. Worse." Lin got to her feet, grumbling. "They're supposed to listen to me, I'm their aunt and a full goddess, but they don't and what am I supposed to do?" 

"Lock them in their rooms?" the Guardian suggested, in jest. He was horrified to see her considering the idea. "I was kidding." 

"Perhaps," Lindara said thoughtfully, "Perhaps my grandmother can help." 

"Your grandmother is...?" the mortal asked. 

"Fleurdelis," the goddess supplied. "My father's mother. She's good and stern, she raised three boys of her own, and they like when Naturalis takes them to visit her. Hmm." 

"You're going to ship them off?" Jikan Tai smiled, slightly. 

"No, not ship them off. How rude. Simply send them on a vacation. I can't deal with them right now. Rayden's a full time job, and that reminds me, I'm sure he hasn't eaten anything today." Lindara started to stand up yet again. "Yes. I think that's the best course of action." 

Jikan Tai had gone pale, and wasn't saying anything. She decided he needed something more to eat, too. 

"Don't worry, I'll cook something for you, too," she continued soothingly. "Now. I'll just go talk to Grandmother and then I think I can make a stir-fry--I'm pretty sure I can manage a stir-fry--it doesn't look at all hard when Rayden does it..." 

  
Jih giggled slightly. His brother elbowed him. "Shut up--they're gonna hear you!" 

"Uh uh," he protested. He tapped his ears. "Monks can't hear nothing!" 

"Grandma said, no pestering the monks," Yueh reminded him. 

"Not pestering them." 

"Uh huh." 

"Uh uh! Just playing with them. They like it when we play with them," Jih assured his brother. "That's why they get all excited." 

Yueh considered this for a moment. Clearly, having to pick between the fun of playing with the monks and the fear of Grandma was hard. "Only play with them for a little bit," he agreed at last. 

Jih smiled, and then started inching forward, crawling on his hands and knees. "Watch this," he said, with barely contained glee. 

  
Lei, one of the masters of the novices, was demonstrating a new meditation when he felt a push on his side. Confused, he looked around, but there was no one there. He shook his head, when suddenly there was a harder shove. He nearly fell over. 

Gung, one of the newer boys, leapt to his feet. "Demons!" he exclaimed. "They must be back!" 

"There are no demons, only in your mind," Lei insisted, rubbing his sore side. 

"I know there are demons! I saw them in the courtyard, yesterday," Gung continued, starting to grow agitated. 

"Yes, in the courtyard in your mind," Lei snapped. He was agitated too; this was the second day in a row that strange events had occurred during his meditation. "Don't listen to the older boys' stories, Gung. Sit down and continue to meditate." Hesitant at first, Gung sat back down, but his words had clearly disrupted the others. 

Lei was about to say something further when all of a sudden he toppled forward. He got up as quickly as he could, leaping to his feet so he could scan the area around him. There was no one in sight but he was sure he could hear the sound of giggles from somewhere. He whirled on his students: they were all suitably stone-faced. 

He was about to comment when he felt another shove at the back of his legs and he started to fall forward when he was suddenly caught, as if by a giant, unseen hand. 

"What is going on!" he blurted. 

"That is what I want to know!" roared a voice. Amazingly, a woman began to appear in the center of the room. Her hair was long and black and she wore a sparkling green dress that trailed down to the ground. Her voice seemed to come from everywhere at once and there was something unnatural about her eyes. 

The novices all immediately bowed low before the Goddess. Lei would have bowed as well, had he not been suspended in mid air. 

"Aunty Lin!" howled a voice, and a small boy suddenly appeared next to the Goddess. She had him by the collar. 

"What did Suyuan tell you!" she cried. She gestured and another small boy appeared at her other hand, this one scrambling to get away, although her grip held fast. 

"Didn't mean to!" he cried. 

"I'm sure. We'll see what Fleurdelis has to say about this!" The Goddess blinked her eyes, and the two boys vanished. Immediately, Lei felt himself being lowered, gently, to the ground. 

"I apologise," the Goddess said, with a deep bow. "They are little horrors, I don't know what possessed Meimei to have them. Please, go back to... whatever it was you were doing." 

She disappeared in wisp of green mist. 

Lei cleared his throat, and the novices looked up. "Now, boys--" 

"What was that?" asked one. 

"Was that a demon, too?" added Gung, quickly, and a little too smugly for Lei's taste. 

"Did that look like a demon to you?" sneered one of the older novices. He laughed. 

Lei sighed. Time to get things under control. "Boys. Calm yourself. You all know of Lord Rayden, who resides at our Temple?" 

They nodded. 

"So this Goddess must have been... part of his entourage. That's all there is to it. Back to the meditation." 

"Master Lei?" 

He sighed. "No, they weren't demons, Gung. They were also part of Lord Rayden's... entourage." 

"Oh." 

Lei settled down. "Now, back to the meditation." 

  
Johnny looked around the tropical beach with a relaxing sigh. The longer he stood on the sand, the more he could feel the stress leaking right out of him. 

"This is the life," he agreed. Maybe staying here for a while wouldn't be so bad... 

He rubbed his hands together. First things first was to stop in at the Temple they had dedicated to him last time he was here. The second thing was to get some of Tiburius' fabulous punch. The third thing was... well, he'd cross that beach when he got to it. 

  
Sonya looked around the Hall with a frustrated sigh. The longer she stood in the corridor, watching deities scurry to and fro around her, the more she could feel the urge to scream build up inside of her. 

Suyuan was walking purposely ahead of her, obviously knowing where she was going. "Adiutor!" she called, waving. A tall, thin god, very familiar to Sonya, scuttled over. 

"Lady Suyuan!" he exclaimed. "What are you doing here? I thought you were in Earth Realm." 

"I was. Something's come up; I need to speak to Celebria. Or Amai, if she's around," Suyuan explained. "Please get them for me." 

"They're both in a Council session--" Adiutor trailed off as he noticed Suyuan's companion. "Ah. Lady Sonya." 

"Lord Adiutor," Sonya replied, with a hint of sarcasm at the title; she obviously did not consider the God of Assistants worthy of it. 

He cleared his throat awkwardly. "They are in session, Ladies--" 

"So interrupt them," Sonya finished smoothly. 

Adiutor started. "Lady--" 

"Can the courtesy. Get us somebody who is capable of doing something other than making excuses," Sonya snapped. Adiutor's eyes widened and he scurried away. 

Suyuan stared. 

"If it works, use it," Sonya replied simply, all trace of hostility gone. 

"You don't make friends that way," Suyuan chided, motherly. 

"I'm not here to make friends. I'm here to get results." Sonya crossed her arms and leaned against the wall to wait. 

Suyuan started to say something, and then stopped. Another woman could be seen coming around the corner. Sonya recognised her as well. 

"Mary," she said, by way of greeting. 

Mary paused, looked at Sonya for a second, looked at Suyuan, looked at the clipboard she was holding, and then back at Sonya. "Oh no." 

"Oh no?" the goddess inquired. 

"You're not on my sheet," Mary explained, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "However, I know that will not deter you in the slightest which means more paperwork for me this evening, if it doesn't also mean the Omniverse is about to implode. Or whatever. Excuse me, I have to go cancel my date." She turned on her heels and marched promptly around the corner. 

Suyuan's jaw dropped. "You've got quite a reputation. I can see why Rayden tries to avoid this place." 

"Rayden's rep is worse than mine," Sonya said, almost sulkily. 

"I'm sure it is," Suyuan soothed. "I just hope we haven't scared everyone off." 

"Doesn't matter if we have," Sonya shrugged. "We can just break down the doors." 

Suyuan gasped. "That's--you can't do that!" 

"Of course we can." 

"But--" 

Sonya sighed. "The way I see it, the Council is just another lame excuse of a government. And I treat governments the same way I treat my superiors: as something in my way." 

Suyuan had recovered from her shock and was now going bright red in the face. "Sonya," she began, quite firmly, "This is exactly what I'm talking about. Deities do not storm the Hall. They do not break Council sessions. They--" 

"Make a lot of lame excuses and rush around in a panic, oh, I know this already," Sonya snapped in frustration. "I've dealt with them and their Council several times in the past few years." 

Suyuan spluttered, indignant at the accusations, but she could hardly deny them. 

Adiutor appeared again, looking nervous. "Ladies, the Council has refused to break up the session; they say that since nothing is really the matter, that--" he gulped, obviously not liking to be the bearer of bad news, especially to Sonya, "--you're not important enough." 

Sonya stood facing him, her arms folded over her arms. Suyuan seemed resigned, and ready to accept the decision, but the younger goddess made no move to go home. 

"Lady Sonya...." Adiutor began, licking his lips nervously, "I do believe that--" 

"Who else can we see about this?" Sonya asked suddenly. 

"Uh..." The god of assistants stuttered for a moment. "There are the Elders, but--" 

"Good. Where are they?" Sonya was acting utterly nonchalant, which only worried Adiutor more. However, Suyuan was not threatened by the deity, so she decided to step in. 

"Sonya, you can not see the Elders. They are--" 

Sonya wasn't listening. She was staring at Adiutor, her eyes narrowed. "Nevermind, Adiutor." 

"P-Pardon?" he blurted, flinching. He seemed to realise that she wasn't going to harm him and he slowly regained his composure. "Is there anything else, then, Ladies?" he asked, mostly to Suyuan, who shook her head. He bowed, and teleported away. 

The goddess of Winds turned to Sonya. "What are you going to do?" 

"Leave," Sonya said simply, with a slight shrug. "Nothing more to do here." 

"Quite right--" Suyuan began, before Sonya teleported away. Startled, Suyuan created a portal of her own back to the Temple. She startled Lin who was busy berating Jih and doing a terrible job of it. 

"Mother!" she exclaimed. "How did it go?" 

"Well, not as well as we hoped," Suyuan admitted. She looked around. "Wait a second-- where's Sonya?" 

"I thought she was with you," Lindara answered. 

"She was. Where--oh no." Suyuan sighed. "I guess I'm going to have to go after her." 

"Go? Go where?" Lindara continued. Jih was trying to sneak away but she grabbed him by the collar and held him fast. "Oh, Fleurdelis said she'd take the boys. Is that okay?" 

Suyuan frowned, not really listening. "Sure. Fine. Keep an eye on Rayden for me; I have a feeling this is going to take longer than I first thought." 

She disappeared. 

Lindara sighed. Jih, sensing an opportunity, tried to bolt but she kept her grip. It was then that she realised she'd lost track of Yueh. Saying something that Jih shouldn't have heard, the goddess created a portal. She pushed her nephew towards it. 

"Don't want to leave!" Jih howled. 

"Fleurdelis is looking forward to seeing you," Lindara told him. "As soon as I find your brother, I'll send him through as well, okay?" 

"Yueh's with Uncle Rayden," Jih told her. "Can I stay with Uncle Rayden too?" 

"No. I just told you, Fleurdelis is looking forward to seeing you. Go." She gave him another push towards the portal. With a long frown and a scowl at the same time, Jih hopped through the portal. Sighing deeply, she closed it behind him. One down, one to go. 

  
Yueh sat himself down and tried to see what Uncle Rayden was looking at. All he could see was the valley. It wasn't very interesting to him, but then his elders frequently did things that weren't very interesting. 

"Whatcha looking at?" Yueh asked, craning his neck. Uncle Rayden was very big. Maybe he could see something the little boy couldn't. 

"Nothing much," Uncle Rayden replied. He sounded very tired. But not annoyed. That was good. 

"Oh." Yueh stopped trying to crane his neck if there was nothing to see. He looked at his Uncle, instead. "You look like Mama." 

Rayden turned then, bemused. 

"Only different," Yueh added. "I wish I had white hair too." He patted his black hair. "I have hair like Auntie Lin and Grandma, instead." 

"Black hair looks very nice," Rayden commented. "Doesn't make you look as old." 

"But you are old," Yueh corrected, with the impeccable logic of a child. "So you look old." 

Rayden chuckled. "Very true, Yueh. That's a good point." He sighed. "But not everything is as it looks." 

"Is that what you're looking at?" the boy asked. "The stuff that doesn't look like it does?" 

Rayden looked down at him. "Sort of." 

"I wish I could see stuff that doesn't look like what it looks like," Yueh pouted. "That's not fair." 

"I'm sure you will some day," his uncle answered, comfortingly. Yueh shuffled over to lean on Rayden's arm, who, in turn, put his arm around him. 

"Do you have any babies, Uncle Rayden?" he asked suddenly. "Mama and Grandma are always going on about babies. I'm not a baby, though." 

"I know you aren't," Uncle Rayden replied, sounding very sad. "And no, I don't have any children." 

"Oh. That's too bad. Then I could play with them," Yueh commiserated. "We could teach them to play with monks. Nicely, with the monks," he corrected himself. "Mama wants more babies. I don't see why. She's got _us_." Yueh frowned. "But we're not babies any more, maybe that's why. Papa says we should just get a dog. I don't know what a dog is. Do you, Uncle Rayden?" 

His uncle mumbled in the affirmative. 

"Maybe we should get a dog. But it doesn't sound like it could play with monks, or make mud pies or see things that aren't looking. Do you like to cook, Uncle Rayden?" 

"Yes," Rayden replied, more coherently. 

"So do I. Want a mud pie? I can make them with rocks and stuff and then they--" Yueh stopped, mid-breath, and cocked his head, as though he was listening to something. "Uh oh." 

"Lin's going to be mad," his uncle agreed. Yueh stared. 

"You hear stuff that's not there, too? That's not fair!" he pouted. 

"Life's not fair," Rayden replied automatically, although he wished later that he hadn't. "You'd better go find Auntie Lin before she finds you." 

Yueh got to his feet reluctantly. He paused and then threw his arms around his uncle's neck. "Don't worry, Uncle Rayden. I'm sure you'll have kids too and then we can all make pies only yours won't be mud because grownups don't like mud and I'll bring the dog and then we can all look at stuff that isn't there." He bounded off in the direction of the Temple. 

Rayden chuckled, unable to help himself. 

  
Sonya felt disturbed the minute she reappeared in the long, dark hallway. It was a simple stone corridor, of the mock-medieval fashion so many of the deities seemed to prefer. Torches, compliments of Sennoma, flickered every few feet. 

_There should be tapestries_, she thought. That caused her to pause; why should there be tapestries? 

She had a sudden mental flash of Cosmos, holding a knife to Rayden's throat. _Of course. Usirapi_. This corridor reminded her of Cosmos' manor in Usirapi. 

She took a deep breath, and tried to relax. She was here, in the Elder Realm, to see Thunder. She had taken the position from Adiutor's mind, and she was going to get this over with. There was no point in making herself tense thinking of old foes and battles. 

She started walking. In truth, she had no idea where to go, but she figured her "spidey sense" would lead her straight to the god's door. And within a few moments, she founded herself outside an elaborate, wooden door. 

There were chills running along her spine. She couldn't figure out why; she had never been here. And for some reason, the uneasy feelings reminded her of Hiko, and Rayden. 

"Remnants," said a voice, beside her. She gasped and leapt backwards as a figure materialised from a thick, gray-green mist. "Remnants of old things, long gone." 

It was a thin, tired old man, with scraggly gray hair and weary, red-rimmed eyes. He was watching her sadly. "You're very adept, for one who has not had the powers long, and who has spent her life keeping others out. Very adept. I'm surprised." 

"Who are you?" Sonya snapped, ashamed of herself for being frightened of the old man. "How do you know who I am?" 

"Everyone does," he told her. "At least, they do now. But I knew you before; knowing people is my specialty." He clapped his hands and a bottle appeared from the air. He caught it with one hand as a pair of glasses appeared in the other. "Drink?" 

"No, thank you," she replied. 

"Come now. I rarely offer deities a chance to drink with me, Lady Sonya. Just one toast." The man poured the glasses with a surprisingly steady hand. The bottle disappeared and he held one glass out to her. "A toast, to Hiko, and Nova. May they find peace with the Creator." 

Sonya nodded, trying to find a way to excuse herself when suddenly the door opened. 

A tall, austere man stood in the frame, glaring down at her. "I don't think you want to drink that," he told her, simply. "At least, I wouldn't if I were you." 

She stared at the old man, but couldn't read anything from him. He vanished abruptly in the same sickly mist that he had appeared from, the glass disappearing as well. She looked up at the new deity, confused. 

He snorted. "You have a lot to learn. Introduce yourself." 

"I am Sonya Blade, Goddess of Space," she snapped, irritated at the sudden rudeness. The deity harumphed. 

"I am Thunder, of the Elders. You may come in, Sonya Blade, of the Space; but do not expect any kindness. You may find you are a little late for that." He turned on his heel, disappearing into the blackness of the room. 

  
Suyuan appeared in the Elder Realm long enough to see Sonya walk into Thunder's wing. "No! Wait!" the goddess cried, but she was too far away. The door slammed, echoing down the hall. She gritted her teeth in anger and stormed down, noting that someone had appeared behind her. 

"Suyuan, wait," a voice called. 

"I'm a little busy now, Mizuno," she replied. 

The Goddess of Water caught the Goddess of Winds by the arm. "Suyuan, stop this. It's Sonya's decision." 

"She doesn't know who she's up against!" Suyuan snapped. "She has no idea what the rules are!" 

"That hasn't stopped her before," Mizuno commented dryly. "Look, she's got to learn some time. It might as well be now." 

"He's going to eat her alive," Suyuan said, quietly. 

"Humans have a saying: if it doesn't kill you, it makes you stronger. I think we immortals could do well to learn that." Mizuno let go of her friend's sleeve. "Suyuan, I would never, ever, get in the way of something between you and Thunder. I'm not that stupid. But this is between Thunder and Sonya; she's got to earn her powers somehow." 

Suyuan didn't say anything, but looked at the wooden door with distaste. Around her, remnants of memories swirled around in her brain. Thunder's part of the Elder Realm was clogged with them, with the disjointed, incoherent experiences of deities. She shook her head. "Why this hall? What makes it so special?" 

"The Thunder Clan has been renowned for its telepathy," Mizuno murmured. "Rayden and Shao Khan have both left their imprints here, trapped by Thunder's powers." 

"How can he live here? With all this...debris?" 

"Thunder has long since learned to only listen to himself," Mizuno continued quietly. "Come. I will take you to my manor. It's much more...pleasant." 

She took Suyuan's hand and they disappeared. 

  
Sonya squinted. She could almost see outlines of figures, resting on the chairs, standing at attention. Snatches of voices. A woman crying. She rubbed her temples, closing her eyes. 

"Ah. I see," Thunder commented dryly. "You are adept. But you have not learned how to fully control your powers, yet." 

"What is..." she trailed off. She could see Rayden, a younger version, walking out of the room. "What?" 

"They are psychic imprints, left behind by deities who could not control their telepathy, or who were around me when I could not control mine." Thunder looked around the room, his nose high as if he was trying to smell something faint. "I suppose I ought to have someone clean it; but it does not bother me any more. You will leave remnants of your own, you know." 

"Remnants?" Sonya inquired. Already, the images were beginning to fade, as she was becoming used to them. "Is that what deities call them? Do they happen often?" 

"Not really." Thunder sighed. "Every year, at Festival, the Realms are cleaned out, remnants washed away. But I cannot be bothered with Festivals any more, and so I stopped going." He sat down in a leather high-backed chair that was positioned so that he could see out the window. "But that's enough of a culture lesson, Space. Why don't we just discuss whatever it is you wish to discuss?" 

She was about to say "how do you know I came to discuss something" but she stopped herself. Thunder obviously knew what he was doing. If his mind powers were as great as Rayden's... 

"They aren't, you know," Thunder interrupted her. "Rayden was--is--one of the best. I had such high hopes for him. I wanted him to take my place as an Elder, as a true leader. But all he wanted to do was run around his Realm." He snorted. "Shao Khan wasn't much better. He had grand ideas, but no follow-through. Both my boys were disappointments, Space." 

"And your daughter?" Sonya inquired, mock-respectfully. He picked up on the hidden sarcasm, she was sure of it, but he refrained from mentioning it. 

"Meimei," he replied with a slight smile, the first she'd seen him make, "is one of the brightest things in my life. She still comes to visit me, even after all this time. After all that's happened with my horrendous excuse of a family, Meimei still comes to see me. She brought her two boys, once, but I can't stand small boys." He scowled. "I don't think I stand much of anything, these days." 

"I've noticed," Sonya said, dryly. She was momentarily distracted by a vision of Cosmos, skulking in the shadows. Thunder sighed, and a teapot and tray appeared on the small table next to him. He poured himself a cup. 

"Tea?" he asked, genteelly. 

"No, thank you," she replied, quickly. 

"This isn't harmful, I assure you," he continued, setting the teapot down. She shook her head and he shrugged. "To each their own." He took the cup and sipped from it, staring out the window. "Ah. I see Rayden is still wasting his time on the hill side," he said suddenly. Sonya started, wondering how Thunder could tell that, until she realised that while the god was looking into the window, he was actually looking into a vision, of some sort. A word popped into her head: scry. She wasn't sure what it meant, or where she had heard it, but it felt right. 

"Why is he doing that, anyway?" Thunder continued, dragging his attention from the window to her face. "Oh. You don't know either. Perhaps he's gone insane. It would be about time." 

"Are you always this horrible?" Sonya snapped, before she realised what she was saying. 

He fixed her with a steady eye. "No, sometimes I am positively rude. You don't do any justice to the previous holder of Space, I hope you know that." 

"I'm glad. I would hate to be following in Cosmos' footsteps," she agreed. 

"Cosmos. Now, he was someone I could put my faith in. It was really too bad that Hiko killed him. He could have done so much for the Omniverse," Thunder reminisced. 

"Yeah, destroyed it," Sonya retorted. 

"Oh, he wasn't going to destroy it; he was simply going to take it over. Rule it properly. Succeed where Shao Khan failed." Thunder scowled again, at another memory dredged up. "But in the end, Cosmos failed as well. I suppose I should have just done it myself." 

"So that you could have failed too and been part of the club?" she asked, sweetly. He glowered at her. 

"I see mortals are not taught to respect the Elders. Had you been a proper deity, you would not be addressing me in such a tone. But then, I suppose if you were a proper deity, we would not be having this discussion at all." Thunder took another sip of his tea. "I'm presuming you are here to talk about Turan?" 

"I am," Sonya agreed, glad to be getting to the topic at last. "I want the Elders to forbid him to- -" 

"No," he interrupted smoothly. 

She started, annoyed by the dismissal. "No?" 

"No. I will not propose this idea to the Elders, simply because I do not approve of it. Whoever told Turan to eliminate you and Johnny Cage is doing the Omniverse a favour and I wish I had thought of it myself. However, the simple fact that it is being done is enough for me. Good day, Space." 

He leaned back in his chair, sipping quietly. 

Sonya just stood for a moment, trying not to vaporise him on the spot. Her fists clenched and she felt her powers building up inside her. 

He looked up, and for the first time, she saw something other than smug condescension in his eyes. "Don't be stupid. You can not try anything here. This is the Elder Realm. This is sacred ground." 

"I'm sure," Sonya replied, taking a step forward, visualizing her fist striking his jaw. It was the best vision she'd seen all day. He paled, and suddenly dissolved in a spurt of gray mist. She looked around her in confusion for a moment, and then tried to teleport after him. But something blocked her way. "What the hell?" 

"I told you!" cried an angry voice as Suyuan suddenly appeared, along with two other deities and the strange man that Sonya had met earlier. "I told you that there are ways that deities behave!" 

"What is going on?" demanded one of the other deities, a dark man who looked vaguely like Lindara, only male. 

"Sonya was about to attack Thunder," the other deity, a woman dressed in sparkling blue, replied, with a fierce look in Sonya's direction. She suddenly shivered. "Oh, I wish Thunder would cleanse his Manor once in a while. Honestly..." 

"I know what you mean, Mizuno," the man replied. 

"Both of you, never mind that," Suyuan snapped. She took a step towards Sonya. "The first thing we have to do is figure out what to do with Sonya." 

"Do? Do what with me?" Sonya exclaimed, taking a defensive posture. "Nobody's doing anything." 

"We need to sit you down, explain everything to you," Suyuan replied, her anger growing. "Both you and Johnny need to learn what we all learned, as children. Things like, oh, you can't attack Elder Gods in the Elder Realm, for instance. There are _rules_, Sonya, you must learn to follow them." 

"I'm not going any where until I get some answers," Sonya replied fiercely. Something was turning over in the back of her mind. _Her and Johnny. Her and Johnny_... 

"You would dare attack us?" Mizuno cried, shocked. "Do you have no manners, at all? You would dare--" 

"She wouldn't," the man insisted. 

The older man, the one Sonya had met outside in the hall, laughed. "I know of many who would disagree with you, Logicalis. Lady Sonya is most capable of it, I assure you." 

"I know she's capable--but would she dare?" the god continued, staring at her with apprehension. The older deity looked to her and she gazed at him levelly. 

"Oh, I think she would," he said. 

"Do you want me to prove it?" she added, making a sudden, although harmless gesture. Logicalis backed up quickly, startled by the movement. 

"That does it!" snapped Mizuno, pushing back the sleeves of her sparkling blue dress. "There will be no more disruptions like this!" 

Sonya was about to retort something when she felt as though she was suddenly punched in the stomach. She doubled over, as the world around her went black. Then there was a sudden light, and she found herself in a broad, grassy plain. The four deities stood over her, hovering over the ground. 

"You will remain here until such a time when the Elders know what to do with you," Mizuno announced, before they faded away. 

Sonya leapt to her feet, shocked. She immediately tried to teleport out, but again, something was blocking her. She couldn't sense anyone, either. 

_Johnny_? 

Nothing. But then, he wasn't very reliable, that way. 

_Rayden_? 

Still nothing. 

_Meimei? Lindara? Jikan Tai?_

She felt like she was calling out loudly, screaming, and no one was replying. She couldn't sense anything beyond the Realm. 

The Realm. It was Usirapi, she was sure of it. Just as she was sure she didn't want to be anywhere near it, never mind trapped. It was a simple grassy plain, stretching out in all directions. Cosmos' castle, his Manor, had been destroyed by Hiko, last time they were here, in this version. There had been the version in Lightning's Realm, which they had left behind them. 

It was very quiet. The utter stillness was disturbing. Every so often there was a hushed breath of wind through the grasses, as though the air itself was fearful of disturbing the silence. Sonya sat down, unsure of what to do. She couldn't contact anyone for help. She couldn't escape. The only silver lining was that she would have her full powers--whatever her full powers consisted of--here, so that if Turan attacked her... 

She sat up, startled. That was it. That was what she had been trying to figure out. 

"No. I will not propose this idea to the Elders, simply because I do not approve of it. Whoever told Turan to eliminate you and Johnny Cage is doing the Omniverse a favour..." 

...whoever told Turan to eliminate _you and Johnny Cage_... 

That was it. Thunder was the one behind it all. Turan hadn't attacked Sonya, he had barely registered her existence. And she hadn't mentioned that at all to Thunder, and yet he commented that the God of Assassins was targeting her, too. 

A simple assumption? It might have been. But it went a long way in explaining Thunder's behaviour, and outright rejection of her plea to stop Turan. She knew from the simple conversation that she had had with him that he wasn't to be trusted and that he preferred sneak tactics; he had said he was disappointed with Shao Khan, she knew that was because Shao Khan was brutal, and senseless. 

It was Thunder, she was sure of it. And if it was, then that meant he would squash any resistance against Turan. Johnny would be trapped in Maresium, either that or Thunder himself would work around that. 

She had to get to her friend, and warn him. 

But how could she get through the Elder block? 

  
"I'm not sure we are doing the right thing," Logicalis replied, growing frustrated. "Yes, she is behaving erratically, and yes, she ignores the Laws, but that's only because she doesn't know them. Yet." 

Mizuno shook her head. "She is dangerous. If she feels she can assault an Elder in his own Realm, in his own Manor, then who knows where she will draw the line?" 

Suyuan sighed. She got up from the table. "I have no place in this discussion, honoured Elders. I ask to be allowed to return to my son's Realm, to care for him." 

"Yes, how is Rayden?" asked Ariel, God of Air. "I heard he has taken Hiko's death badly." 

Suyuan stared at him. 

"You know what I mean," he persisted. "There has not been much news from Earth Realm, lately. Even Celebria is unsure." 

Suyuan sighed, and sat back down. "I suppose I can fill you in." She took a deep breath. "After the... battle, Lindara asked me to come and stay with Rayden, she was concerned for him. I came, and about two weeks went by, and then Meimei came as well, with Jih and Yueh. Tai Hou couldn't come, he was in dispute with his father over something, I don't remember what." 

"The Realm is having problems," Logicalis filled in, but Ariel gestured for him to be quiet. 

Suyuan continued. "During the month that we've been there, Rayden seemed fine. Distant, hurt, but able to continue. He was helping his mortals rebuild his Temple; I think that gave him something to occupy himself with--" 

"Why didn't he just create another one?" asked Mizuno, frowning. 

The goddess shrugged. "I don't know why. Perhaps he preferred to help his mortals, he likes to do that sort of thing. At any rate, another two weeks went by and then Jikan Tai showed up, Rayden disappeared, and then reappeared, and now..." She trailed off, shaking her head. "Now, I just don't know what's happened. He's shut himself off completely, he won't share his thoughts with anyone, just sits outside and stares at the sky." She started shaking, and both Mizuno and Logicalis moved to comfort her. "I just don't know what's the matter, and then Turan showed up and now Sonya's attacking Elders and Lindara's home alone with the boys and Meimei's off sorting out Tai Hou and Shimauma--" 

Logicalis helped her to her feet. "Perhaps, Suyuan, it is better if you go home, to Officina. You need a rest, a break from the stress--" 

"No!" she insisted, "No, I need to find out what has happened to Rayden. We keep meaning to find out but something keeps happening--Jikan Tai showed up half-dead--" 

"Suyuan," Logicalis said firmly, "I think it is best that you go home, and rest. I will call Meimei myself, get her to go to Earth, and keep an eye on Rayden and Lindara. The stress would get to anyone." 

"I do miss Naturalis," Suyuan admitted, her resolve wavering. "But Rayden--" 

"Will be in good hands," Mizuno added. "Come, now, Suyuan. Logicalis will take you to Officina." 

"Take my hand," Logicalis said, offering it to Suyuan. She took it and they disappeared. 

Mizuno sighed, and sat back down. 

"I suppose we had better get back to business," she said, very quietly. 

"Turan is not doing a very good job," Ariel snapped, "and you're not making it any easier for him, Mizuno. Now the mortal is trapped in Usirapi, the one place where Turan can't go!" 

"What was I supposed to do, hand her over on a silver platter?" Mizuno snapped. "That wouldn't have seemed suspicious at all!" 

"There must be someway of getting Turan in there," Ariel grumbled. "Thunder, do you have any more bright ideas?" 

Thunder stepped out of the shadows, dispelling the hiding mist around him. He took his customary seat between Ariel and He Who Must Not Be Named, who was watching quietly and saying nothing. "I don't think I do have anything to say, at the moment," the god replied, sourly. "By the way, Mizuno, that was a brilliant plan of yours. I knew we could count on you to use your head." 

Mizuno rolled her eyes. 

"Both mortals are sequestered away where no one can get them," Ariel grumbled. The deities all sat in a thoughtful silence, no one mentioning anything or disputing Ariel's comment. 

"That's not true at all!" Mizuno exclaimed loudly, startling her comrades. She sat forward suddenly, her eyes alit on the old man, sitting peacefully beside Thunder and beside Logicalis' empty seat. 

He returned her gaze with a tired look. "No." 

"No?" Thunder exclaimed. "No?" 

"That is what I said," the god replied wearily. "No." 

"Why not? You alone are not influenced by the Barriers, it says so on the Scroll," Mizuno pouted. 

"Because I don't wish to," the old man replied, leaning back in his chair, trying to become more comfortable. Thunder began to retort but the man cut him off with a single glance. "End of story." 

"Then Miz will just have to think of something else," Ariel said, after the long silence stretched too far. "She got us into this, she can get us out." 

Mizuno glowered, but said nothing in reply. 

  
Lindara poked her head around the door. "Guardian? Are you awake?" Jikan Tai did not answer. He was lying on his side, facing away from the door, but she could tell by his breathing that he was awake. "Guardian?" 

"Yes, Lady Lindara?" he asked, very morosely. "Can I help you?" 

"No, I was going to ask you if there was anything _you_ needed," she admitted. "I see you ate your stir-fry--" She paused, unsure of whether to continue. "Guardian, what's the matter? You've been at loose ends ever since--well, ever since I've known you." 

Jikan Tai lifted his head slightly, just so he could peer over his shoulder at her. "You don't know me at all." 

This surprised the goddess, and her face showed it. "But, I--" 

"I'm very tired," he said, with a sigh. "Please leave." 

Lindara paused at the threshold, confused. "Guardian, this isn't right. You need to--" 

"I need to sleep," he insisted, anger creeping into his voice. 

Something in Lindara seemed to snap, and she, too, grew angry. "Guardian, I think you and I both know the last thing you need is sleep!" she blurted, very indignant. "I've healed your wounds, and you slept all last night. You need company, that's what you need." 

"What?" Confused and still angry, Jikan Tai sat up to glare at her properly. "I need what?" 

"You need company. Social interaction. It's the best thing to get you over what ever it is you're not over yet." Lindara came and sat at the end of his bed. "I'll keep you company. We can have meaningful discussions. For instance, I recently created a deal with--" 

"I don't talk," Jikan Tai snapped. 

"Of course you do. You're doing it right now." 

"I don't _converse_," he amended. "I say what needs to be said. That's it." 

She looked at him askew. "But--how do you--you must have conversations with people!" 

He sighed, and flipped the bangs out of his eyes. "I'm not a talkative person." 

"Oh, I know that. But everybody needs to have discussions, now and then. We needn't gossip, if that's what you're worried about. I'm a little out of the loop, myself. I--" She paused, thinking about something, but then she decided not to say it. She shook her head, and then continued. "But I think it's the best idea to get you out of your depression." 

"I'm not depressed," he countered. 

"Oh? Then explain how you feel. Right now." Lindara stared at him, waiting expectantly. 

He stumbled for words. "I'm...tired." 

"You can do better," she prompted. 

"I'm..." He paused, deep in thought. "I--" 

She waited, patiently, while he tried to sort out his emotions within himself. Apparently, he couldn't come up with an answer, and just looked at her forlornly. She sighed, and took his hand, patting it. "You need some fresh air. Whenever I was upset, in Agri, I'd tour around. The fresh air does wonders, you know. Well, Earth's isn't so great, any more, but it gets the job done. Come on." 

She stood up, still holding his hand, effectively tugging at him to get up. He sighed, and got to his feet. 

"Much better. Now, I think we'll avoid the hill side--it's already taken by someone brooding-- Ah! I know the very place. Hold on tight, now...." Lindara trailed off, and teleported them away. 

  
It was a forest. It was a young, deciduous forest, beeches and maples and oaks, all covered in spring colours, fresh greens and yellows. Jikan Tai looked around him in surprise, astonishment showing on his face. 

Lindara smiled, and slipped away, sitting on a fallen, mossy covered log that suited the colours in her dress perfectly. "Isn't this place lovely? I had it in mind when I designed Agri. Well, most of Agri. Rayden's Realm may have turned out odd, but there are a few spots here and there that are really worth looking at." 

"It's beautiful," Jikan Tai agreed. "Where is it?" 

"Oh, I don't know what the natives call it. We just call it 'Lin's Forest'; I liked to come here a lot when I was small." She smiled at the memory. "I liked forests even then." 

"I have never seen this place before," the Guardian continued. It reminded him in many ways of the Wood Between Worlds. He held up a hand to his face, squinting against the brightness of the sun as it filtered through the canopy. Birds sang in the branches. Squirrels and other small rodents scurried in the underbrush. Insects hummed. It was a glorious cacophony, so unlike the still, sterile Wood that he had come to know so well. 

"I knew you'd like it," Lindara announced. "This is the perfect place to pick up one's spirits. I feel better already!" 

He turned to look at her, the question unspoken. 

"I've been under a lot of stress lately," she told him. "Rayden is only the latest in my little series of adventures and mishaps." 

"Oh?" Despite his best intentions, Jikan Tai found himself curious. He took a step forward, hesitant. The goddess understood his meaning immediately and shifted over, patting the space of log next to her. 

"Sit down," she said sweetly. "I'll tell you all about it. That will get the conversation off and running." 

Very slowly, and cautiously, he sat down. 

"Now. It all started a few years ago. Shao Khan, my half-brother, challenged my Realm to a Mortal Kombat..." 

  
Jikan Tai laughed. It was a small laugh, not very much more than a chuckle, but it was the first time in a long, long while that he could remember laughing out loud. 

Lindara was indignant. "I really do not see what's amusing--" 

He waved her quiet, hiding his smile behind his hand. "I just... get a mental picture of you, drunk. It's amusing." 

"I was not _drunk_," Lin insisted. "Yes, I had several nectars, but I was _not drunk_." 

"Okay," he agreed, pleasantly. He sighed and leaned back, nearly falling off his seat. Lindara reached over to catch him, laughing. She pulled him up. 

"Talking about drunk..." she teased. "Forgot you were sitting on a log?" 

He nodded, bashfully. He carefully scooted himself off, so that he could lie back, looking up at the sky, his legs still draped over the log. "It is very beautiful here," he said, at last. He closed his eyes. "Very peaceful." 

"I know," Lindara agreed. "I should bring Rayden here. It might cheer him up, bring him out of whatever's the matter." She looked down towards the Guardian and found him staring at her through narrowed lids. "Jikan Tai? Is something the matter?" 

"No," he said slowly, closing his eyes again. A silence descended down and his happy mood was shattered. 

"Jikan Tai," Lindara said softly, "Is it something to do with Rayden? Is that why you're so upset?" 

"I'm not upset," he insisted, the lie so blatant and foolish he wondered why he had attempted it. All of a sudden, the forest no longer seemed pleasantly alive; it seemed loud and chaotic. He sat up, then stood, brushing dirt and leaves off his clothes. He never got messy in the Wood... 

"Jikan Tai!" Lindara exclaimed worriedly. She grabbed his sleeve with her closer hand, afraid that he was going to leave her behind. "Don't go! I'm sorry, whatever I said, I'm sorry." 

"You didn't do anything," he told her, quietly. "It's me. It's something that I have to work out, for myself." 

She seemed a little defeated by his remark. He sat back down on the log, beside her. "Lady Lindara? What is the matter?" 

She waved him off, unsure of how to begin, or even whether she should tell him at all. "It's silly," she began. "Too silly, I shouldn't be worrying about it at all." 

He paused, looking at her, very solemn. "You can tell me, Lady. I promise it will go no further." 

She ducked her head. "I... I just get this feeling, that people don't trust me." 

"Lady, that's absurd--" 

"No, no, I mean, that they don't trust me to know what's going on. I've always been the last one to know things, and that never bothered me until now. But all this stuff with Rayden, and what Sonya said, and Lightning--" She took a deep breath. "I just get the feeling that my family doesn't think I can handle what's going on." 

Jikan Tai nodded. "I think I know the feeling," he said, quietly. "But I don't think you need to be worried. I think your family trusts you, but perhaps they are a little too busy to fill you in on everything." 

"Maybe." Lindara didn't seem convinced by this. "Nova was like that too." Jikan Tai paled, but she didn't notice and blithely continued. "I saw her, just before Lightning attacked, and then I tried to help her against Lightning, and the whole time, there was so much of the story she just wasn't telling me. Who Lightning was, for instance. All this nonsense about alternate Omniverses. And then whenever I brought it up with Rayden, he clammed shut." She picked at the moss beside her, in frustration. "I just feel, I don't know, shut out, or something." 

Jikan Tai didn't say anything. Lindara finally looked up, to see whether he agreed with her, or was simply confused, but he was looking out at the forest, deep in thought. 

"Guardian?" she asked, hesitantly. 

"I was just thinking," he said quietly, "that perhaps--" 

"Oh!" Lindara exclaimed suddenly, sitting bolt-upright. He stood up, alarmed; perhaps she had been stung by a bug, or something. He had vague memories of bug bites from when he was very small. "Oh, Meimei's home!" the goddess continued, joyfully. "This is great! I have so much I have to talk to her about!" She leapt to her feet. "Oh, Jikan Tai, this has been so much fun, but I have to go home, back to the Temple. Are you coming?" 

"I...I think I'll stay, thank you," he replied, quietly. "I can portal myself when I'm ready to go back." 

She nodded, and disappeared in a flash of green light. 

Jikan Tai settled back on the log. He looked around himself, at the trees and the forest. It was a perfect metaphor for Lindara herself: beautiful, peaceful on the surface, but full of activity and noise. 

He decided he liked the forest, hectic though it was, compared to the others he had seen. The natural chaos was just what he needed, he thought, to get himself back on track. 

  
Meimei found herself in the Temple. She took a deep breath, and started to look for her family. But the corridors were empty. She knew at once that her boys were elsewhere; she didn't have much in the way of sensing ability but she knew where they were, always. She also knew that Suyuan was at home, in Officina; but where was everybody else? 

"Lin?" she called, her voice sounding very loud. "Jikan Tai? Johnny? Sonya--" She remembered what Logicalis had said about Sonya. The goddess wasn't sure she believed it--Sonya wouldn't attack an Elder, would she?--but she had to trust the Elder's judgement. "Rayden?" 

No answer. But then, he was probably outside, still. She sighed, worried. At least the storm overhead had cleared up and it wasn't still pouring. She closed her eyes, and thought outwards. Perhaps she could reach her sister-- 

_Meimei_! came the joyful response. _You're home! I have so much to talk to you about_! 

Meimei caught of flash of Jikan Tai; he must be near to Lindara. _It's good to be back, but where is everybody_? 

There was a flash, and Lindara suddenly teleported in. "Oh!" her older sister exclaimed. "You startled me!" 

"Sorry," Lin replied. "I didn't mean to. What were you saying, before that?" 

"I just wanted to know where everyone is," Meimei repeated, smoothing down her hair. For some reason, it felt terribly messy. "I know about Suyuan--" 

"What's happened to Mother?" Lindara exclaimed. "I thought she and Sonya--" 

Meimei's eyes widened. "You don't know!" she exclaimed, horrified. She took Lindara's elbow and pulled her in closer. "Now, keep this to yourself. I'm sure it'll be spread all over the Omniverse by this afternoon, but I don't want it to be because of me." 

Lindara nodded, breathless and expectant. 

"Sonya attacked Thunder, in his own Manor," Meimei said, quietly. "Logicalis came to tell me. He's taken Mother back to Officina, she needed a rest, he said, and then he told me what he could. It was very sketchy, but Sonya's been taken to Usirapi, and is being held there." 

The Plant goddess stared, in wonder. "She attacked _Thunder_?" 

"From what I've heard." Meimei shook her head. "I knew that Sonya was strong-minded, but I didn't think she'd do this. I'm going to visit her, later. See if I can talk some sense into her--" 

"Better not," Lindara advised. "I'm sure the Elders have it under control." 

"Hmm. Maybe you're right." Meimei looked around her, confused. "Where are the boys?" 

"Oh," Lindara answered, looking sheepish. "I sent them off to Fleurdelis'. Suyuan ran off, with Sonya, and Johnny left--" 

"Left? To go where?" 

Lindara sighed. "It's getting complicated. The point is, I was left by myself with the boys--well, and Rayden too, but I don't he's in any condition to police those two, so I asked Fleurdelis to take care of them for a little while." 

"Ah." Meimei didn't seem distressed to find out that her twins were no longer at home, if anything she seemed a little relieved. "Now, what happened to Johnny?" 

"He's being attacked by Turan, we're not sure why, but we think it's because Turan's upset that Johnny has the fire powers," Lindara began. 

"Turan did always have a thing for Hiko," Meimei mused. "He used to follow her around at the Festivals." 

Lindara seemed a little off-put by this. "Really?" 

"Oh yes. I remember, it was before I met Tai Hou, I decided to follow Turan around myself-- " 

"I never knew that!" 

"You were too busy trying to follow in Naturalis' footsteps, that's why. Anyway, let's get back to the point," Meimei concluded. 

"Yes, let's get back to the point," someone agreed behind her, in a gravelly voice. Both goddesses turned. 

"Rayden!" 

He was leaning against the hall wall, arms crossed, looking upset. "Why wasn't I told about any of this?" 

Both Meimei and Lindara looked sheepish. "We didn't want to bother you--" 

"Well, I'm bothered now," Rayden snapped, suddenly. He stopped, and took a deep breath. "Sorry. I'm just a little out of sorts--please, tell me what's going on. Where's Johnny?" 

"He's in Maresium," Lindara finished. She was edging towards him, but he backed up and she took the hint. "He's gone there until we can figure out how to stop Turan." 

"Oh." Rayden took a deep breath, again. He seemed to be steeling himself up for something. "I suppose I should go talk to the Elders--" 

"No!" Meimei blurted, suddenly. "No. You don't have to do anything. Lindara and I, and Mother, when she's rested, we'll take care of everything. Really. You don't have to worry." 

Rayden stared at her, blankly. "I'm not worried." 

"That's good," Meimei continued. She too, took a step towards him, but he backed away. She exchanged a glance with Lindara. Before either goddess could react, Rayden teleported off. Meimei sighed, sadly. "I wish we knew what happened to him. What could possibly throw him for this big of a loop?" 

"I don't know," Lindara commiserated. An idea suddenly came to her. "Meimei, can I ask you something?" 

"Sure," Meimei replied, starting to make her way from the hall, to her room. "I guess so." 

"Rayden and Hiko were always very close, right?" Lindara asked, blurting it out. 

"I guess so. Why?" 

"Well... uh... Jikan Tai said that Cosmos would never let them be alone together. Is that true?" Lindara paused outside the room while her sister rooted through her belongings for something. 

"Very true. Occasionally, Rayden and Cosmos would come to blows over it. Or would have, if somebody or something didn't stop them. I remember once, it was the Feast, I believe, when--aha! Here it is!" Meimei held her hairpin aloft for a moment before putting it into her hair. The bushy mass of white friz was barely held in place, so she started looking for another pin. 

"So they were never alone together. At all." Lindara repeated this, stressing the "alone". 

"No. Why?" Meimei looked up, frowning. "What are you getting at, Lin?" Her mouth dropped open as the realisation hit her. "Do you realise what you're saying? You think they were having an affair?" 

"Well... I..." Lindara stuttered. Said out loud, the idea did sound ludicrous. Ludicrous and dangerous. She knew Rayden and Hiko were in love, and that Rayden would do almost anything for her, but she also knew them to be sensible. Having an affair would no doubt have endangered both of them... "You're right. It's a silly idea." 

"I'll say so." Ruffled, Meimei went back to looking for her hairpin. "I hope you didn't bring this up with Mother, you know how concerned she is about betrothals." 

"Oh, I know," Lindara agreed, sourly. "I know." 

"Ah. Been on the receiving end of that, have you?" Meimei smirked. "I didn't get much of that, since I had boyfriends off and on--although I did get quite a few lectures not to do anything stupid. As if I would have. Still, that's the sort of thing that Mother worries about." 

"I know." Lindara suddenly felt the urge to mention Jikan Tai, but she wasn't exactly sure why. "I did ask her, but I didn't go very far with it." 

"That's good. Now, where is--aha! Found you!" Meimei crowed, putting the second pin into her hair, effectively fastening it all down. "Now that I look a little better, I think I'm going to go visit Mother, see if there's anything I can do in Officina. Do you need anything?" 

"No, Jikan Tai and I should be fine," Lindara answered. Meimei looked at her. "What?" 

"'Jikan Tai and I'? Where did that come from?" her sister asked. 

"Oh, well, you know--I took him out to the forest, to cheer him up. We spent the whole afternoon talking. He's really very interesting, and sweet, once you get past all the... the..." Lindara frowned, not knowing the word. 

"The angst?" Meimei offered. She chuckled. "I'm glad to know that someone is drawing him out. Rayden's told me so much about him, about when he was growing up--it's really all a shame. Oh well." She shrugged, and looked around the room, now a huge mess thanks to her pawing through everything. "I guess I ought to be going. I'll see you in a little while, okay?" 

Lindara nodded, and her sister teleported away. 

  
  
On To Part Four 


End file.
